Pakistan's ISI Faces Major Shake-Up After Intelligence Failures, Munir's Warning

Officials tracking developments in Pakistan said that the army and the ISI are not on the same page as of now.

The two wings of the Pakistan establishment, which have always worked in tandem, are moving in different directions since the last couple of months, the official said.

The security forces have been caught like sitting ducks in multiple situations. The most embarrassing situations that the security forces have faced are at home and this has angered the army the most.

The rift between the two began post India's 'Operation Sindoor'. The Intelligence agencies in Pakistan completely failed to provide any information. They did not have an idea about 'Operation Sindoor', an Intelligence Bureau official said.

Post the operation, Pakistan has been battling the Balochi forces and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The casualties have been very high for the Pakistani forces.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the TTP runs a parallel government. After taking on the Pakistani forces, the TTP has set up checkpoints to ensure that no member of the Pakistan Army or ISI are able to enter.

What is worse is that in many parts of Balochistan or KP, the security forces are refusing to go all out. They have been complaining that the Intelligence is either too weak or not there at all. This makes them an easy target and hence the reluctance has been growing.

Field Marshal Asim Munir earlier this week called for a meeting of top officials of the army and ISI. He had some harsh words directed at the ISI.

His message 'perform or perish' has not gone down too well with the top brass of the ISI.

The ISI is also upset that Munir is looking to carry out a major shuffle within the ISI. This means many in the top brass are likely to be moved out of the agency.

Munir feels that the ISI has completely failed in providing Intelligence relating to issues that are taking place within Pakistan.

Around three months ago, the Pakistan army chief had instructed the ISI to get Grade A and actionable Intelligence on top leaders of the Balochistan National Army (BLA) and TTP.

The army chief had particularly mentioned TTP chief, Noor Wali Mehsud and said that he needs to be eliminated at any cost.

Another official said that it is not just the ISI, but the army chief is also cut up with his Military Intelligence Wing.

The Military Intelligence wing, too, has failed to provide proper information about the top Taliban leadership.

Field Marshal Munir had said that unless and until the top Taliban leadership is not wiped out, the war in Afghanistan cannot be won.

The Pakistan military has managed to hit several targets in Afghanistan, most through air strikes. However they seem to be hitting more civilians rather than the top leaders.

This has led to the war being prolonged and the army chief is unhappy about it. The Pakistan armed forces had estimated that they could complete the war in Afghanistan in less than a week.

However, constant Intelligence failures have only led to the war prolonging and the Afghan Taliban getting more time to regroup and fight back.

Another official said that within the Pakistani Intelligence circles, they feel that the army chief is biting off more than what he can chew.

Post the setback that Field Marshal Munir got following 'Operation Sindoor', most had expected that they could take sometime to regroup and then focus on other operations. However, Munir decided to go on a battle on multiple fronts.

Pakistan is in a conflict with the people of Balochistan, the TTP and now a war in Afghanistan. Gathering Intelligence on multiple fronts at the same time has stressed the Intelligence community.

This explains the constant failure and the heavy loss of lives among the security forces in Pakistan. The failure to gather Intelligence and also being given an ultimatum by the Pakistan army chief is likely to demoralise the agency further and this could result in more losses for Islamabad, the official also explained.

- IANS