Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Kayani has directed the ranks and cadres of military to give befitting response to any foreign aggression and take a decision in this regard on the spot as the “command of chain system” has been suspended owing to serious circumstances in the wake of recent NATO strikes on Pakistani border posts in Mohmand Agency, which killed 24 soldiers.

The attack by NATO on Saturday, which is dubbed as “intentional and deliberate” by the civilian and military leadership, has led to great anguish and anger among the ranks of the armed forces and it has been decided not to tolerate such assault in future and give it befitting response.

General Kayani held a crucial meeting with his military commanders a day after the NATO strike at the General Headquarters (GHQ) but its details were not shared with the media. After the meeting, the army chief sent a letter to the armed forces in which important decisions taken at GHQ were conveyed to them.

In accordance with the decisions, there would be no need to follow the army’s command and chain system and any official or soldier, at any particular place, would be allowed to take a decision on his own without waiting for the orders from the top so that any aggression from outside would be matched.

“The decision has been made owing to the breaking down of the communication system as result of the NATO strike on the Pakistani border post in Mohmand Agency,” an official said.

The NATO strike, which was unexpected, led to a great loss of life as the army was not anticipating any such aggression from its allies and the Pakistani soldiers were taken aback. “The army chief in the meeting declared that no foreign aggression would be allowed in future and all possible measures are being taken to defend the country,” the official said.

Apart from doing away with the command and chain system, some other important steps are also being taken such as reinforcement of troops on the Pakistani side of the border and also to increase the surveillance flights of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) on the country’s border with Afghanistan.