RAWALPINDI: Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa on Monday assumed charge as the spokesman for the armed forces, taking over from the outgoing DG ISPR Major General Athar Abbas.

Bajwa was appointed as the Director General Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) earlier in April to take over the position from Abbas after he retires in June.

Bajwa was posted in Dera Ismail Khan as a general officer commanding for the past two years. Under Bajwa’s leadership, the army conducted military operations against militants in the South Waziristan tribal region.

Prior to that, he served as the deputy military secretary under Former President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf. It is believed that Bajwa, who has also commanded the 111 Brigade, played an active role in the publication of the Urdu edition of Musharraf’s controversial autobiography ‘In the Line of Fire’.

He holds a Masters degree in Defence Studies from Kings College London UK & MSc War Studies from NDU, Islamabad. He is also the recipient of Tamgha-i-Basalat.