How many Of Our Generals faught in WW2?

[Joe Shearer]

I Concur. Its imperative that such information maybe jotted down to preserve history. It can be a very helpful thing for many a persons. Unfortunately, I'm not able to do so, because "My Man" is now "Late".

KIT Over

Dear Sir,

I am so sorry to hear that. My sincere condolences on your irreparable loss. It is hoped that other members who have aged relatives having served in WWII or other wars will take care to get their memoirs transcribed, or at least taped.

Sincerely,

 

[T-Faz]

Maj Gen Akbar Khan of Rawalpindi Conspiracy fame also fought in WW2.

Major-General Nazir Ahmad also fought in WW2 and was a part of the conspiracy too.

 

[T-Faz]

Some of my cousins (a couple of generations above) fought in WW2, some died, some were captured and some returned.

One was captured and made to eat dry wall by the Japanese as a POW. He was finally released much later and came back in very poor physical health.

 

[sparklingway]

Major-General Nazir Ahmad also fought in WW2 and was a part of the conspiracy too.

No he was not. He was stated to have a "connection" with the conspiracy and retired on these grounds without any trial. The case trial did not mention him even as a suspect. Regardless of how the issue was bloated in order to justify coming down hard on dissenters, Ayub used this to retire Nazir as he was one of the generals who had some spine and wasn't the usual "docile" soldier that British recruited.

 

[blain2]

Your forecast about East Pakistan is baffling. Ayub got extension after extension because of his proximity to Iskandar Mirza, and would have retired long before. Therefore Iftikhar Khan would have retired even earlier, well before 63/64. How did you think of Bangladesh (eight years later than his last possible date of service) in connection with him?

I think the point was that the likelihood of Maj Gen Muhammad Iftikhar getting the Army involved in politics was fairly low. Obviously one cannot say for sure, however many officers in the Army then and now have been staunchly against Army entering the political fray.

He did. He fought on the western front. He was the last Pakistani COAS to fight in WWII, except his successor, General Zia ul-Haq. General Asif Nawaz, a very fine soldier, in my humble opinion, one of the three best Pakistani Chiefs, was the first Chief not to have seen WWII.

Very good insight but one correction. Asif Nawaz was not the first of the PA chiefs to not see action in WWII. The very first one was Gen Aslam Beg. He was from 6th PMA Long Course and passed out in 51/52. There would have been pthers had Zia not been the Army chief for 11 years. Beg was also the very first of the SSG officers to have become the CoAS of the Pakistan Army.

Could I also draw the atention of readers to that fine officer and gentleman, Lt. General Sahabzada Yaqub Khan? He, too, served in WWII, on the western front, in the desert, and had a distinguished career thereafter, and then resigned and put in a brilliant second innings as a diplomat at a time when Pakistan needed diplomats more than soldiers. A great man.

Sincerely,

Without a doubt, Lt Gen Sahibzada Yaqub Khan is a very decent human being, and has been a professional officer and a fine diplomat.

One other officer missing from the list is Lt Gen Habibullah Khattak who served in Burma. He last appointment was that of CGS, Pakistan Army. His son Lt Gen Ali Kuli Khan was also CGS, Pakistan Army. Both the father and the son retired prematurely from the Army.

Mag Gen Abu Bakr Usman Mitha, another very fine officer, also fought in Burma and was part of the paratroopers prior to joining the Pakistan Army. He was prematurely retired by Bhutto as QMG, PA after the 1971 war.

There are quite a few others such as Lt Gen Attique Rehman (famous historian of the Piffers). The first Pakistani Corps commander who also served in Burma. He was a gentleman as well. A relative of mine was his ADC and saw him from up close for a while.

 

[Joe Shearer]

I think the point was that the likelihood of Maj Gen Muhammad Iftikhar getting the Army involved in politics was fairly low. Obviously one cannot say for sure, however many officers in the Army then and now have been staunchly against Army entering the political fray.

As a matter of fact, this point was addressed very well by another poster, and I have had occasion to revise my opinion.

Very good insight but one correction. Asif Nawaz was not the first of the PA chiefs to not see action in WWII. The very first one was Gen Aslam Beg. He was from 6th PMA Long Course and passed out in 51/52. There would have been pthers had Zia not been the Army chief for 11 years. Beg was also the very first of the SSG officers to have become the CoAS of the Pakistan Army.

I am sorry, this was a lapse; how could I lose sight of this? Beg being one of the first SSG officer was a fact that I have encountered before, but had honestly forgotten.

Without a doubt, Lt Gen Sahibzada Yaqub Khan is a very decent human being, and has been a professional officer and a fine diplomat.

One other officer missing from the list is Lt Gen Habibullah Khattak who served in Burma. He last appointment was that of CGS, Pakistan Army. His son Lt Gen Ali Kuli Khan was also CGS, Pakistan Army. Both the father and the son retired prematurely from the Army.

Mag Gen Abu Bakr Usman Mitha, another very fine officer, also fought in Burma and was part of the paratroopers prior to joining the Pakistan Army. He was prematurely retired by Bhutto as QMG, PA after the 1971 war.

There are quite a few others such as Lt Gen Attique Rehman (famous historian of the Piffers). The first Pakistani Corps commander who also served in Burma. He was a gentleman as well. A relative of mine was his ADC and saw him from up close for a while.

Leaving out General Khattak was a definite and horrrible mistake.

From Z. A. Khan's account, Mitha was 'beyond it' a bit by 71. His major contribution was the fillip given to special services, quite some years back, I think six or seven years by this time.

Thank you for this very necessary note, which fills in various gaps and omissions.

Sincerely,

 

[sparklingway]

I've been trying for the past couple of years to somehow arrange an interview either conducted by me or anybody else with Sahabzada Yaqub sahab. He remains media shy and never talks about most of the things that happened in the corridors of power, especially the lead up to the '71 war.

He won't be with us for very long and it would be extremely pathetic if we are not able to get his opinion and accounts in a written format. He's rejected publishing any memoirs many times. It'll be a disgrace to not know the events from the eyes of one of our very best soldiers and able public servants.

I once met a FSP guy who saw Sahabzada Yaqub address a meeting in Dhaka in Bengali as the Foreign Minister. He had earlier delivered public speeches in Bengali during his term as Governor East Pakistan as well. One can easily tell a brain-dead jackboot from such a brilliant, articulate an intellectual one. A true servant of the nation.

 

[brahmastra]

British Indian army was the largest voulanteer army in the history(2.5 million at the end of ww2). So, there were many soldiers who has fought in ww2 and then later served in Indian and pak armed forces.

 

[fatman17]

I've been trying for the past couple of years to somehow arrange an interview either conducted by me or anybody else with Sahabzada Yaqub sahab. He remains media shy and never talks about most of the things that happened in the corridors of power, especially the lead up to the '71 war.

He won't be with us for very long and it would be extremely pathetic if we are not able to get his opinion and accounts in a written format. He's rejected publishing any memoirs many times. It'll be a disgrace to not know the events from the eyes of one of our very best soldiers and able public servants.

I once met a FSP guy who saw Sahabzada Yaqub address a meeting in Dhaka in Bengali as the Foreign Minister. He had earlier delivered public speeches in Bengali during his term as Governor East Pakistan as well. One can easily tell a brain-dead jackboot from such a brilliant, articulate an intellectual one. A true servant of the nation.

i know him well - will forward this request to him!

 

[sparklingway]

i know him well - will forward this request to him!

I cannot thank you more. Perhaps you could conduct a detailed interview, maybe one spread over a couple of sessions. We can discuss the questions in the TT section in such a case.

 

[apophenia]

It bothers me that Sahabzada Yaqub Khan is an unexplored subject till date by his own choice even though his influence in the defense and diplomacy of Pakistan is permanent. Few years back I heard that he was willing to write something to record his part in our history but I guess his inborn shyness and a fierce desire to remain correct has stopped him. I know its childish but someone needs to tell him that it’s not a matter of keeping it in , it’s about helping this nation learn from history.

 

[Kyusuibu Honbu]

British Indian army was the largest voulanteer army in the history(2.5 million at the end of ww2). So, there were many soldiers who has fought in ww2 and then later served in Indian and pak armed forces.

Its actually considered as an embarrassment for the Indian Govt.But can't blame them as at that time 95% of India was poor & joining the army was the only way to earn bread fr the family.

 

[blain2]

Leaving out General Khattak was a definite and horrrible mistake.

From Z. A. Khan's account, Mitha was 'beyond it' a bit by 71. His major contribution was the fillip given to special services, quite some years back, I think six or seven years by this time.

Thank you for this very necessary note, which fills in various gaps and omissions.

Sincerely,

Interestingly enough, Habibullah Khattak was from the 1st IMA course, the same as FM Sam Manekshaw, Gen Musa and a very dear but late relative of mine. Quite a few big names belong to 1st IMA.

Mitha, was a soldier's soldier by all accounts based on conversations I have had with officers who served with him. The senior NCOs/JCOs of the SSG (those who had served with him) used to speak very highly of him as did the officers of the SSG who had the privilege of serving under him. Back in 1997, I was in Washington DC and interestingly enough I took a taxi from the Airport. The taxi driver was an older gentleman who had served in the SSG as a JCO and we started talking. He was also from one of the original batches and spoke very highly of Mitha and the original cast at Cherat in the late 50s/60s. I got him in touch with a couple of retired SSG officers in the DC area for catching up on old times - the least bit that I could have done

In my view, Mitha's retirement was a massive injustice. Service rivalry got the best of him unfortunately.

Z A Khan's book is a great read as well. He was known for calling BS when he saw it. It landed him in quite a bit of trouble, but mostly because he was right. His family is another illustrious military family with 6 brothers having served the Army, Navy and the PAF. Brig Z A Khan and his brother Gen Shamim Alam Khan (who later rose to be CJCS) were known to my family because of the SSG. Very competent and intelligent officers, all of the brothers I must say.

 

[blain2]

Its actually considered as an embarrassment for the Indian Govt.But can't blame them as at that time 95% of India was poor & joining the army was the only way to earn bread fr the family.

There is some shame culturally for having served our colonial masters for their ends, however militarily, this made up for a lot of rich military traditions and battle honours across the two countries.

 

[GUNNER]

Mitha, was a soldier's soldier by all accounts based on conversations I have had with officers who served with him. The senior NCOs/JCOs of the SSG (those who had served with him) used to speak very highly of him as did the officers of the SSG who had the privilege of serving under him.

My father served under him and regards him as one of the most competent officers of his time.