Tag: Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor

  • VIDEO: ‘I’m ISPR DG’s nephew; friend of PM, Gen Bajwa,’ man threatens Motorway Police

    VIDEO: ‘I’m ISPR DG’s nephew; friend of PM, Gen Bajwa,’ man threatens Motorway Police

    A video of an unknown man misbehaving with motorway police is making rounds on the internet, claiming that he is the nephew of Major General Asif Ghafoor, the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

    The video shows that the guy is misbehaving with police officials when they asked him to move his vehicle on the side of the road. The man while replying to officials demand said, “I am a son of an MNA and Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and army chief are my friends”.

    He also said that he is a captain and all these officials will get dismissed.

    The person also insisted the police officials to dial a number.

  • Akcent’s lead vocalist had a ‘fantastic’ cup of tea with DG ISPR Gen Asif Ghafoor

    Akcent’s lead vocalist had a ‘fantastic’ cup of tea with DG ISPR Gen Asif Ghafoor

    Romanian pop band Akcent’s lead singer Adrian Sina, after his concert at the Alhamra Cultural Complex in Lahore, paid a visit to the ISPR Headquarters where he had a “fantastic cup of tea” with DG ISPR Major General Asif Ghafoor.

    Taking to Twitter, the singer shared a short video of himself with Gen Ghafoor in which he says, “I am so happy that I had a chance to travel from Romania to Pakistan to meet General Asif Ghafoor and ISPR.”

    Sipping on his tea, he added, “I discovered, once again, that Pakistani tea is fantastic.”

    The Director-General of the ISPR had invited the band to have tea at his office when they announced their visit back in October.

    Meanwhile, Akcent’s concert in Lahore on Sunday was embroiled in controversy. The pop band was initially scheduled to perform at Governor House to ‘express solidarity with the Kashmiris’.

    However, the event drew ire on social media with users questioning the logic behind holding a concert to raise voice for Kashmir. Following the backlash, the Punjab government, including Governor Chaudhry Sarwar and Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, withdrew its support and logistics. The government also did not allow the organisers to provide Kashmir flags to the concert participants. All flexes referring to the oppression of Kashmiris were also pulled down.

    Since the Romanian band was invited and payments were made, it performed at the Alhamra Cultural Complex before a large crowed but without any gesture for held Kashmir – it was held as a music concert without any political or diplomatic agenda.

    Akcent performing at Alhamra

    The development upset many including Sina, who was reportedly disappointed that he could not speak a word about the Kashmiris. Sina’s press conference, which was scheduled at the Governor House, was also reportedly cancelled.

    Chief Minister’s Taskforce on Women Development chairperson Tanzila Imran Khan, the host of the event, also expressed her disappointed saying that she herself had contacted the band’s lead and made payments from her own pockets to raise voice for the Kashmiris.

  • ‘Army chief’s extension is final,’ says PM Imran amid reports of govt-army rift

    ‘Army chief’s extension is final,’ says PM Imran amid reports of govt-army rift

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s office has again confirmed the three-year extension given to Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa recently, saying a notification pertaining to the extension in the general’s tenure has already been issued on August 19, Pakistan Today reported.

    According to the details, the statement came after a meeting between PM Imran and Gen Bajwa amid reports of an alleged rift between the civilian government and the military establishment. This was the second meeting of the two bigwigs in a week.

    During this meeting, the top leaders discussed matters pertaining to national security, said the statement issued by the PM House.

    In the earlier meeting, Gen Bajwa met Imran in an apparent attempt to allay the latter’s concerns over the recent political developments in the country. The statement further said that the two sides discussed the prevailing situation in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK) and at the western border, and internal security issues were discussed.

    The PM’s meeting with the army chief was followed by a meeting with Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lt Gen Faiz Hameed on Tuesday.

    However, media reports dub these meeting as an attempt to assuage Imran’s concerns by the military. “The government and army are not on the same page due to disagreement on certain points, especially the exit of former PM Nawaz Sharif from the country on health grounds,” reports had earlier stated.

    After these statements, military spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor refuted claims of an alleged divide between the country’s civilian and military leadership, reiterating that both sides are on the same page.

    “This is baseless gossip. There is absolutely nothing of the sort,” said ISPR director general as he dismissed speculations of a rift.

    “The army is supporting a democratically elected government as per the constitution. There will be no let-up in this [support] as it is a must for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan”, he added.

  • ISPR chief wishes India ‘get well soon’ over cow dung fight for ‘good health’

    In yet another trolling episode, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor has wished neighbouring India “get well soon” over cow dung fight for “good health”.

    As per the details, customary annual Gore Habba festival was recently held in the Gumatapura village of southern India. In a viral video, villagers were seen holding massive cow dung fights, believing it has a healing effect.

    While getting smeared in moist bovine discharge is hardly a pleasant experience for most, each year after the Diwali holiday, the villagers – and anyone willing to join them – partake in the faecal festival that is all about excrement-throwing.

    “Get well soon…” the ISPR chief tweeted while reacting to the video on Thursday.

    While it might look quite unsanitary to smear your whole body in faeces, the devotees believe it is not only harmless, but actually cures diseases.

    “Cow dung is very natural and has a lot of medicinal benefits. Others might say if we throw cow dung at each other we will get some infections or even some disease. But with the trust of our god Beereshwara, we are playing in the cow dung, so nothing happens to us,” RT quoted one of the villagers as saying.

    The villager further said that the festival was all about equality and anyone regardless of their caste or religion can participate. Still, women are barred from the excrement-throwing part, yet they are free to watch the show.

    The tradition comes from the belief that remains of a saint were placed in a pit in the village, and took the shape of a Linga (an abstract phallic representation of Shiva), which became covered by cow excrements over time. The deity of the village is believed to value cow excrements too, thus the villagers dump the substance in abundance behind the local temple.

  • Army follows govt’s orders, has nothing to do with politics: Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor

    Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor has said that Pakistan Army is not meddling in politics as it is busy in ensuring the security of the country.

    “Marches and sit-ins are a political activity and the army, as a state institution, has nothing to do with them,” he told a private media outlet and added that it had also supported the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government during the 126-day sit-in staged by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in 2014.

    “The army had followed the government’s instructions at that time and as an institution, had deployed troops for the security of important buildings and performed other tasks assigned by the government,” the military spokesperson said.

    “The army follows the government’s orders,” he said while talking about the military’s deployment during the general elections and added it was only for security reasons.

    “The work we are involved in does not allow us to become a part of any such [political] activity,” he said in an apparent response to the allegations levelled by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman regarding the military’s involvement in politics.

    The ISPR chief further said that the army’s primary focus was ensuring national security and they would not allow any efforts to harm national stability. “We will always support the government within the ambit of the constitution.”

  • VIDEO: ‘We are impartial,’ military spokesperson tells disgruntled Fazl

    VIDEO: ‘We are impartial,’ military spokesperson tells disgruntled Fazl

    Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor has said that Pakistan Army is an impartial institution and its support lies only with the democratically elected government.

    Speaking to a private media outlet on Friday night, the military spokesperson said that Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman was a senior politician and he should elaborate as to which institution he was talking about in his Azadi March address.

    Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor’s statement came as JUI-F’s anti-government march on Friday reached Islamabad and Fazl trained guns at the “illegitimate” Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

    Addressing the protesters, he said that they did not want any confrontation with the institutions, but wanted them to be impartial. “We are giving you two days to stop backing the government,” he said, reiterating his demand for the institutions to be impartial.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Following the JUI-F chief’s fiery speech, the ISPR DG said that the army had only discharged its constitutional and legal duties during the 2018 election. “The opposition should take its reservations to the authorities concerned.”

    He added that unrest at such a crucial time was not in the better interests of the country.

    “So far there has been good coordination between the government and opposition committees,” Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor said and added that democratic issues should only be resolved democratically.

    He also said that no one will be allowed to harm the country’s stability.

    FAZL’S REACTION:

    “We don’t know on what basis he [Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor] has issued the statement,” the JUI-F chief said later in the day while speaking to media after attending a multi-party conference of opposition leaders at his residence.

    Fazl added that the statement should have come from a politician instead of the ISPR chief since he represents the institution of army.

    Earlier, the JUI-F chief gave Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan two days’ time to tender his resignation. “After this, we will make our own decision. We will not wait anymore.” He expressed his readiness to have a dialogue with the institutions, but said that the government had to go.

  • VIDEO: Sheikh Rasheed claims discussing ‘nuclear attack’ with ISPR chief

    VIDEO: Sheikh Rasheed claims discussing ‘nuclear attack’ with ISPR chief

    Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed has claimed having discussed with Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor what “fireworks” to use and when.

    “In Beijing, I told [the] ISPR DG that I wittingly made the statement regarding the use of quarter or half kilogram fireworks when the time comes,” he said while speaking to journalists on Saturday.

    The minister had earlier warned India that Pakistan “even has small nuclear bombs weighing 125-250 grams”, which can hit and destroy targeted areas.

    “We know if we want to use our 1-inch, 2-inch or half an inch [atomic bombs],” the minister had said last month, leaving netizens all cracked up.

    “My information is more accurate than most of the people… and Pakistan doesn’t want war. But I stand by my words that it would be the last war. I told Asif Ghafoor that I understand better as to what is to be said in public,” he said Saturday.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    He further said that the nation cannot remain silent while Indian atrocities continue in held Kashmir. “We’re standing with Kashmiris. Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is standing with Kashmiris and so are the country’s armed forces.”

    “India committed two blunders. The first one was carrying out atomic explosions while presuming that Pakistan would not do so and secondly, it scrapped special status of Kashmir on August 5 this year, believing Kashmiris won’t react”, the minister had said last month.

    His statements had come as tensions started to soar on either side of the border ever since New Delhi on August 5 revoked Article 370 of the Indian constitution, robbing the people of the troubled valley of their autonomous state.

    India has since kept Kashmir under lockdown.

  • ISPR chief defends Indian pooja of new jet, trolls neighbours for their ‘incompetence’

    ISPR chief defends Indian pooja of new jet, trolls neighbours for their ‘incompetence’

    With India finally receiving the first unit of Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Rafale fighter jet from France, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) chief Major General Asif Ghafoor has defended Indian defence minister’s “weapon worship”, but also trolled the neighbours for their incompetence.

    The French-made aircraft was acquired by the IAF at a handover ceremony in Merignac where Defence Minister Rajnath Singh performed “shastra pooja” on Rafale.

    The act was severely criticised by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BRP) rival Indian National Congress (INC) as opposition leaders questioned the Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi-led government for “saffronising” the handover.

    With Pakistani Twitterati also taking to the microblogging site to call out their neighbours over Singh’s move, the ISPR chief has said that there was nothing wrong in it.

    “Nothing wrong in #RafalePuja as it goes by the religion and that must be respected [sic],” Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor wrote.

    He, however, also trolled Indians over their incompetence in words that appeared to be hinting at the aerial standoff between airforces of the two countries from earlier this year.

    “Please remember… it’s not the machine alone which matters but competence, passion & resolve of the men handling that machine. Proud of our PAF [Pakistan Air Force] Shaheens. #PAFtheMenAtTheirBest [sic].”

  • The Current Exclusive: Pictures of D.G. ISPR and Zoro

    The Current Exclusive: Pictures of D.G. ISPR and Zoro

    The star of HUM TV and ISPR’s joint project, Ehd-e-Wafa is undoubtedly Director General of the Inter Services Public Relations, Major General Asif Ghafoor’s dog, Zoro.

    Not only did Zoro steal the show, but after The Current broke the news that he wasn’t just anyone’s dog, his pictures have gone viral.

    Here are a few exclusive pictures of Zoro that are too cute to handle.

    A pedigreed Thai Golden retriever, Zoro has more than 10.3K followers on Instagram

    After Zoro’s television debut, his followers on Instagram doubled and he now has 10.3K followers.

    A Champion, Zoro has taken part in dog competitions

    According to Zoro’s Instagram (@zoro_retriever) he has taken part in dog competitions in Islamabad and has taken home the prize.

    Exclusive picture of DG ISPR with Zoro

    D.G. ISPR Asif Ghafoor is also lucky enough to be the only person Zoro is following on Instagram, along with the official account of Ehd-e-Wafa.

    Zoro’s portrait photograph

    Zoro doesn’t have a Facebook page and everyone seems to be waiting for his YouTube channel to launch. But one things for sure: we are going to get to see a lot more of this beautiful dog on social media – and the silver screen.

    If you missed The Current’s exclusive video revealing the identity of Zoro, watch it here:

  • You can’t please everyone: Emraan Hashmi responds to DG ISPR’s tweet on ‘Bard of Blood’

    Shah Rukh Khan and Emraan Hashmi’s Netflix project Bard of Blood received immense criticism when its trailer released late last month. Most Pakistanis, including Director General ISPR Major General Asif Ghafoor slammed Bollywood for its anti-Pakistan storyline. (In case you missed that controversy, you can follow this link for a quick update.)

    The eight-episode series, which revolves around the story of an ex-RAW agent in Balochistan, will premiere on Netflix this Friday. Based on Bilal Siddiqi’s novel of the same name, Bard of Blood has been produced by SRK and starres Emraan in the lead.

    Emraan has been promoting and discussing the projects on various platforms. In a recent interview, when asked about his reaction to DG ISPR’s comments on the series, Emraan responded, “This way, you don’t end up making any film because whenever you have content that has even remotely anything associated with anything political related to these two countries [India and Pakistan], emotions do run high. And you have to bear the brunt in this. Social media is full of this.”

    He continued, “I think that one tweet [Gen Asif Ghafoor’s] led to other people spewing hate. But to put things to rest, there is no propaganda here.”

    “This is based on a book that is written by a then 20-year-old kid back in 2014,” Emraan added. “The political climate at that point of time was very different.”

    Emraan finished off saying, “There is no agenda to it. Our show is based on that book and that’s that. You can’t please everyone. You make a show of this nature, which has some kind of political relevance, and it going to snowball and you will have people talking. Everyone has an opinion these days.”

    Meanwhile, in another interview, Emraan said that he doesn’t let such issues bother him and said that he is “excited” for the series “since the promo got a lot of traction.”

    “I want everyone to see it and I’m sure everyone will love it,” he said.

    Speaking to Gulf News, Hashmi said that inordinate care has been taken not to hurt any particular country’s sentiment.

    “Remember, it’s primarily for entertainment … It’s a pure work of fiction and all the character and are mission are fictional,” he stated.

    Meanwhile, the series has opened to positive responses from critics.