Mohammad Iqbal Khan (; 1924–2000) was a four-star general in the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

who served as the third

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee The Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) is, in principle, the highest-ranking and senior most uniformed military officer, typically at four-star rank, in the Pakistan Armed Forces who serves as a principal staff officer (PSO) an ...

from 1980 to 1984.

Biography

Mohammad Iqbal Khan was educated and graduated from the Military College in

Jhelum Jhelum (; , ) is a city, located along the western bank of the Jhelum River, in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 21st largest city in Punjab and 31st largest in Pakistan, by population. Located in northern Punjab, it serves as the capital of the ...

and was commissioned in the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

in 1944. He joined the

Guides Infantry The Guides Infantry, or 2nd Battalion (Guides) The Frontier Force Regiment, is an infantry battalion of the Pakistan Army. It was raised in 1846 as part of the famous Corps of Guides (British India), Corps of Guides, a highly mobile force to a ...

in the 2nd Frontier Force Regiment as 2nd-Lt. and later serving in the first war with India on Kashmir front in 1947.A.H. Amin
"Interview with Brig (retd) Shamim Yasin Manto"
''Defence Journal'', February 2002 After participating in Second war with India in 1965,

Brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

Iqbal was appointed as the

Director-General A director general, general director or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''general directors'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'') is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer ...

of the

Military Intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...

in 1969, and was politically involved in supporting the

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major List of political parties in Pakistan, Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a Cent ...

(PPP) against the

Awami League The Awami League, officially known as Bangladesh Awami League, is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. The oldest existing political party in the country, the party played the leading role in achievin ...

. Eventually, Brig. Iqbal held the responsibility of

in 1971. In 1971–73, Major-General Iqbal held the command of the 33rd Infantry Division in

Quetta Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a ...

as its GOC, and oversaw the

military operations A military operation (op) is the coordinated military actions of a state, or a non-state actor, in response to a developing situation. These actions are designed as a military plan to resolve the situation in the state or actor's favor. Operatio ...

against the armed insurgency groups in

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region o ...

in Pakistan. In 1974, Major General Iqbal was posted as Chief of General Staff (CGS) under

Chief of Army Staff Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boat ...

General

Tikka Khan Tikka Khan, also known as the Butcher of Bengal.Tikka Khan title: * * * * * * * * (; 10 February 1915 – 28 March 2002) was a Pakistani military officer and war criminal who served as the first Chief of the Army Staff (Pakistan), chief of the a ...

at the Army GHQ in

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...

which he served until 1976. In 1976, Maj-Gen. Iqbal was promoted to the three-star rank army general and was posted as field commander of the

IV Corps 4 Corps, 4th Corps, Fourth Corps, or IV Corps may refer to: France * 4th Army Corps (France) * IV Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * IV Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperi ...

based in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. In 1977,

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Iqbal took over the control of the

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

in Pakistan as its

martial law administrator Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial ; March, between 38 and 41 AD – between 102 and 104 AD) was a Roman and Celtiberian poet born in Bilbilis, Hispania (modern Spain) best known for his twelve books of ''Epigrams'', pub ...

when

Gen.

Zia-ul-Haq Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (12 August 192417 August 1988) was a Pakistani military officer and statesman who served as the sixth president of Pakistan from 1978 until his death in an airplane crash in 1988. He also served as the second chief of ...

imposed the

martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

against the

civilian government Civil authority or civil government is the practical implementation of a state on behalf of its citizens, other than through military units (martial law), that enforces law and order and that is distinguished from religious authority (for exampl ...

on 5 July 1977. Lt-Gen. Iqbal was later rotated when Lt-Gen. Sawar Khan took command of the IV Corps, and appointed as the field commander of the

V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to: France * 5th Army Corps (France) * V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Arm ...

and served as the

Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...

in Pakistan. In 1978, Lt-Gen. Iqbal was again posted at the Army GHQ in

when he was appointed as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (DCOAS) under President

."Pakistan under Zia, 1977–1988" by Shahid Javed Burki ''Asian Survey'', Vol. 28, No. 10 (October, 1988), pp. 1082–1100 During this time, he was appointed as the

Colonel Commandant Colonel commandant is a military title used in the armed forces of some English-speaking countries. The title, not a substantive military rank, could denote a senior colonel with authority over fellow colonels. Today, the holder often has an honor ...

of the

Frontier Force Regiment The Frontier Force Regiment is one of the six infantry regiments of the Pakistan Army. They are popularly known as the ''Piffers'' in reference to their military history as the PIF (Punjab Irregular Force) of the British Indian Army, or as the ...

, which he served until his retirement in 1984.

Chairman Joint chiefs (1980–1984)

In 1980, Lt-Gen. Iqbal, who at that time was the senior military officer in the military, was promoted to the four-star rank and appointed as the

. In 1980, Gen. Iqbal played a crucial role in maintaining of the

Afghan Arabs Afghan Arabs (; ; ) were the Arab Muslims who immigrated to Afghanistan and joined the Afghan mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War. The term does not refer to the history of Arabs in Afghanistan before the 1970s. Despite being referred t ...

in the country and supported the

anti-Russian Anti-Russian sentiment or Russophobia is the dislike or fear of Russia, Russian people, or Russian culture. The opposite of Russophobia is Russophilia. Historically, Russophobia has included state-sponsored and grassroots mistreatment and di ...

agitation when Soviet Union intervened in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

. Gen. iqbal eventually and coordinated the national security meetings concerning the covert efforts in

. In 1984, Gen. Iqbal completed his four-year term and eventually retired from the military.

Awards and decorations

Foreign Decorations

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Iqbal Year of birth missing Year of death missing People from Rawalpindi District British Indian Army officers Frontier Force Regiment officers Indian military personnel of World War II Chief of the General Staff (Pakistan) Pakistani military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Governors of Punjab, Pakistan Military government of Pakistan (1977–1988) Chairmen Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee People of the Soviet–Afghan War Recipients of Nishan-e-Imtiaz Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz