Masood Aslam

He was commissioned in the 4th Battalion of the Punjab Regiment (known as Beasi) on 14 November 1971 in the 47th PMA Long Course as his course was shortened due to East Pakistan crisis of 1971.[4] Within a few weeks of commissioning, he was seriously wounded fighting in the front lines at Chumb-Jaurian sector.[4] He was awarded Imtiazi Sanad (mentioned in despatches) and the 'Golden wound stripe' for his efforts and gallantry.[4]

He was among the pioneer officers who established the computer branch at the GHQ in early 1970s. He is a graduate of Command and Staff College, Quetta, armed forces war course (Afwc), and holds a master's degree in War Studies from the National Defence College, Qaid e Azam University Islamabad. He has also attended overseas courses including United Nations peacekeeping course from Sweden and a Security Studies course from Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii.[5]

He served at Siachen for more than a year in the early days of Siachen conflict with India.[4] He established military posts at Siachen and served at glaciated heights of around 20,000 feet.[4] As a Lt. Col, he commanded an Infantry battalion at Okara and then as a Brigadier-General, commanded two infantry brigades, one of which was at Minimarg in Gilgit Baltistan.[4]

He was awarded Sitara-i-Jurat for his extraordinary service and bravery by the then President Rafiq Tarar, after the Kargil encounter.[4]

He commanded 23rd Infantry Division Jhelum on the LoC during the period of escalation, when Indian and Pakistani troops were tied up face to face in a very tense warlike state for two full years in 2001–03. He then served as the Director General NAB (Punjab), and was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General in 2005 and posted as Inspector General Training and Evaluation (IGT&E).[5]

Lt Gen Masood Aslam took charge of the sensitive post of Corps Commander Peshawar, also known as XI Corps, replacing Lt Gen Muhammad Hamid Khan. This was period when Pakistan Army launched military operation against the vigilantes of Lal Masjid in Islamabad that followed with a rising trend of terrorist attacks throughout Pakistan, mostly emanating from the rugged lands of Waziristan and the surrounding tribal regions. A counter-terrorist operation was then launched under the general.

Lt Gen Masood Aslam pushed out defeated the militants in Swat, Buner, Dir Lower and other districts of Malakand Division and inflicting heavy blows against the TTP cadres in Bajaur, Mohmand and Khyber tribal agencies and Frontier Region (FR) Bannu. Lt General Masood Aslam was given an extension in his tenure as he was supposed to retire in October 2009.

In the First Battle of Swat, also known as Operation Rah-e-Haq, Masood led the fight between Pakistan and the Taliban over control of the Swat District of Pakistan.[2]

In the Battle of Bajaur, also known as Operation Sherdil, Masood led this military offensive in the Bajaur region of Pakistan launched by the Frontier Corps and supported by a Combat Brigade of the Pakistan Army in which the Bajaur area had been under Taliban control since early 2007, and was said to be Al-Qaeda's main command and control hub for operations in Northeast Afghanistan, including Kunar province.[2]

In Operation Zalzala, also known as Operation Earthquake, Masood commanded the first major Pakistan Army military offensive and counter-insurgent operation in South Waziristan which was commenced on 18 January 2008.[2]

In Operation Black Thunderstorm, Lt. Gen Masood Aslam led a military operation conducted by the Pakistan Army, with the aim of retaking Buner, Lower Dir, Swat and Shangla districts from the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan after the militants took control of them since the start of the year.[2]

Also known as The Second Battle of Swat, Lt. Gen Masood Aslam led Operation Rah-e-Rast and involved the Pakistani Army and Taliban militants in a fight for control of the Swat district of Pakistan.[2]

In the Mohmand Offensive, also known as Operation Brekhna/Thunder, Lt. Gen Masood Aslam led a Pakistani military operation against the Tehrik-i-Taliban in the Mohmand Agency area of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.[2]

In Operation Rah-e-Nijat, also known as Path to Salvation, Lt. Gen Masood Aslam led a strategic offensive military operation by the unified command of Pakistan Armed Forces against the Tehrik-i-Taliban/TTP and their allies in the South Waziristan area of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas that began on 19 June.)[2]

Elected President of the Frontier Golf Association (FGA) in 2008.[6]