ISLAMABAD, FEB 26: Jalil Abbas Jilani, director-general South Asia division at the ministry of foreign affairs, will replace Masood Khan as foreign office spokesman, Dawn learnt through well-placed government sources on Saturday.

Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohammad Khan took this decision early this week.

Mr Jilani will assume additional charge as the spokesman next week, sources said.

A formal announcement of his appointment would be made by outgoing Spokesman Masood Khan on Monday at his last weekly news briefing.

Masood Khan, who was appointed spokesman in June 2003, will be proceeding to Geneva in the second week of March to take over as Pakistan's permanent representative to the UN mission there.

Mr Jilani, a senior career diplomat, joined Pakistan Foreign Service in 1978. He was appointed director-general South Asia division in February 2003 when he returned to the headquarters after six years. He has been actively involved in the ongoing peace talks with India since the resumption of Indo-Pak composite dialogue a year back.

His last posting abroad was as Pakistan's acting high commissioner in New Delhi. Before this, he served as political counsellor at the Pakistan embassy in Washington. He has also held important diplomatic positions in the UK, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. In 1992, he was appointed as deputy secretary foreign affairs at the Prime Minister's secretariat and later re-designated as director India at the ministry of foreign affairs.

Mr Jilani served in India for almost four years, but was made to leave in February 2003, after being declared personae non grata by the Indian government on alleged charge of giving money to a Hurriyat worker. Significantly, the Hurriyat worker, a woman, whom he was said to have given the money later told the court that she had been coerced into making a false statement.