Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir promoted to field marshal after recent skirmishes with India

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s powerful army chief, Gen. Asim Munir, has been promoted to the rank of field marshal days after a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between nuclear-armed rivals Pakistan and India following one of their most serious military confrontations in decades.

In a statement, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also approved the extension of Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu’s tenure in recognition of his service.

Sharif has praised Munir and other military leaders for what he described as a “befitting response” to an Indian airstrike on Pakistani air bases in the early hours of May 7.

Munir becomes only the second military officer in Pakistan’s history to hold the title of field marshal. The first was Gen. Ayub Khan, who led the country during the 1965 war with India.

“I am deeply thankful to Allah Almighty for this honour,” Munir said in a statement.

The ceasefire was aimed at ending weeks of escalating clashes, including missile and drone strikes, triggered by the mass shooting of tourists last month that India blamed on Pakistan, which denies the charge.

Nearly 7,500 people from Pakistan and India have since signed a petition calling for dialogue between the two sides. The online appeal, titled “India, Pakistan: Stop the Hostilities,” was launched on May 7 by the South Asia Peace Action Network, a coalition of peace advocates, journalists and citizens.