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India-born general ends Sharief's reign

Pakistan's army Chief, General Pervaiz Musharraf, who apparently ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief in a stunning coup, is a professional commando and veteran of two wars with India.

Pakistan state radio said late today that Sharief's 31-month-old government had been dismissed.

Born in New Delhi in August 1943, General Musharraf underwent his early education in the port city of Karachi after he migrated to Pakistan along with his family.

He joined Pakistan's army in 1964 and served in an artillery regiment after training in the well-known military academy of Kakul in the North West Frontier Province.

In 1965, he fought Indian troops in the Khem Karan sector in Punjab province during the 16-day war with India, taking part in major battles for which he received a medal for gallantry.

In 1971, when Pakistan again went to war with India, General Musharraf, who had trained as a commando, was a member of the elite military special services group of commandos.

General Musharraf has commanded senior staff and instructional positions in his rise up the ranks, commanding armoured divisions and infantry brigades along the way.

As a lieutenant general, his last key posting took place in 1995 as commander in Mangla in Punjab, an important military area close to the border with India.

UNI

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