Peshawar: Pakistan Army today replaced the chief of its powerful intelligence agency ISI amid a blame game over the major international embarrassment the country faced when Envoys of 11 countries had a narrow escape in a bomb attack in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province yesterday.
The government tried to blame Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) for the IED attack on the convoy of diplomats in Swat but the Islamist militant group dissociated itself from the incident and alleged the involvement of intelligence agencies.
The diplomats of Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Portugal, Bosnia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia and Rwanda, on a Pakistan government-conducted tour to Malam Jabba in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, were returning when their convoy was targeted.
While all the diplomats escaped unhurt, an escort security vehicle was hit by the blast, killing one policeman and injuring three.
The attack has caused a major embarrassment for Pakistan internationally as it has reinfored the view that the country is not a safe place.
Significantly, the Pakistan government had conducted the tour for the foreign diplomats to showcase Swat as a tourist place, which boomeranged badly.
A day after the incident, Pakistan Army appointed Lieutenant General Asim Malik as the new Director General of ISI, replacing Lt General Naveed Anjum.
Gen Malik is currently serving as Adjutant General at the General Headquarters of the Pakistan Army.
The change of the ISI chief comes amidst a blame game about who had carried out the attack.
The TTP, which was sought to be blamed, issued a statement, saying it has got “nothing to do with the attack”.
It referred to the demand by locals that Pakistan Army should be withdrawn from Swat and the law and order powers be given to the police.
The TTP said this demand is gaining momentum and a demonstration in this regard is being organised on October 27.
It went on to add that the attack on diplomats’ convoy might have been an attempt by the intelligence agencies to thwart this protest slated for October 27.
“(Pakistan’s) intelligence agencies have been doing such actions to collect money from foreign countries,” said the statement issued by its spokesman Muhammad Khurasani.
