Who Is Major General Faisal Naseer, Pakistan’s New NACTA National Coordinator?
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — WEB DESK: Pakistan’s federal government has appointed Major General Faisal Naseer as National Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA) for a three-year term, placing an experienced intelligence and security officer at the helm of the country’s central counter-terrorism coordination body.
According to an Establishment Division notification, the appointment was made with federal government approval under Section 9(1) of the NACTA Act, 2013. Major General Naseer has been appointed on a secondment basis for three years, with immediate effect and until further orders.
Who is Major General Faisal Naseer?
Major General Faisal Naseer was promoted to his current rank in 2022. According to the Express report, he was commissioned into the Punjab Regiment before moving to the Corps of Military Intelligence during the earlier part of his military career.
His professional career has been heavily focused on intelligence, internal security and counter-terrorism. He served twice in Balochistan and was involved in security and counter-terrorism assignments in both Balochistan and Karachi, according to the report.
Following his promotion to major general, Naseer was appointed to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) as DG(C), a senior position dealing with domestic security matters. Dawn notes that the post is sometimes described as heading counter-intelligence, but more precisely leads the agency’s Internal Wing, which deals with domestic security and related matters.
He had served in that position since 2022, through a period marked by significant political and security developments in Pakistan.
Major General Naseer is also a recipient of Hilal-i-Imtiaz (Military) and Tamgha-i-Basalat, according to reporting on the government’s appointment notification.
Why does the NACTA appointment matter?
NACTA is Pakistan’s principal civilian institution for coordinating national policies against terrorism and violent extremism among federal and provincial authorities. It was established before receiving statutory backing through the NACTA Act, 2013.
Its mandate includes developing national counter-terrorism and counter-extremism strategies, preparing action plans and coordinating their implementation. NACTA has also been associated with implementation of Pakistan’s National Action Plan against terrorism and extremism.
Naseer’s appointment is noteworthy because most previous National Coordinators have come from civilian services, particularly the police. His appointment therefore represents a departure from the pattern seen during much of NACTA’s history.
The move also comes as Pakistan continues to confront significant security challenges, particularly terrorism-related violence and counter-terrorism operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. His experience in military intelligence and internal security could therefore play an important role in efforts to strengthen coordination among NACTA, intelligence agencies, police and other federal and provincial institutions.
The federal government has not publicly provided a detailed explanation for the timing of the change. Major General Naseer’s three-year appointment, however, places him in a central position in Pakistan’s evolving counter-terrorism architecture.
