Military
Will there be a new Chief of Army Staff in Pakistan? Going by the media accounts, it would seem so. according to official spokesman Maj-Gen (retd) Rashid Qureshi,  General Pervez Musharraf, who has been holding the charge since 1998, has finally decided to give up his uniform for a civilian presidency. The spokesperson said Musharraf, without the uniform,  would be sworn in as a civilian President at the Aiwan-i-Sadr on 29 November, 2007. As per the established norms, the present Vice Chief, Lt. General Ashfaq Parvez Kiyani, would take over from  Gen Musharraf.

Taliban
The new Chief has his priorities cut out. He will have to first deal with the Taliban-al Qaida terrorists taking on the might of Pakistan Army for several months now. Yesterday, the security forces used artillery and gunship helicopters on pro-Taliban militants in the troubled Swat valley, killing 40 militants, including two Taliban commanders, and lost four soldiers. Backed by helicopter gunships and artillery, security forces bombed several strongholds of militants in Imam Dehri, Koza Banda, Bara Banda and Ningwalai. But the battle is far from over.

Source: The Daily Times, Dawn