The chief of Pakistan's military forces on Monday appointed an experienced military officer to be the new chief of the country's intelligence unit amid its battle with Islamic insurgency.

Pakistan's military chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, appointed Lt. Gen Rizwan Akhtar, an army officer with experience in militant group combat, to be the new head of the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI).

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Akhtar, who previously led a group of military forces based in Karachi, will be replacing Lt. Gen. Zaheer UL-Islam, who has been the intelligence agency's head since 2012 and is scheduled to relieve his post on November 7.

Prior to Akhtar's promotion as a lieutenant general, he was first promoted to the rank of major general after a major reshuffle. But it was his promotion as the new spy unit chief that drew the attention of the media, since the position is considered as the second most powerful in the military.

Meanwhile, the ISI has been facing scrutiny after reports circulated that it used harsh tactics and political power to control the media. The spy unit was once accused of the attempted assassination of Hamid Mir, a senior Pakistani journalist, when the agency was still under the rule of General Islam.

In addition, the ISI was also accused of supporting a group of demonstrators headed by cleric Muhammas Tahir-UL and Imran Khan, who started a movement to urge Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to step down. But the military has denied all accusations.

According to analysts, even with the prime ministers power over the ISI,  the military announcement of the appointment showed which branch holds the authority over the agency.

Based on a statement released by retired general and commentator Talat Masood, the conflict between military and civilian leaders was due to "mutual paranoia."

Masood said that the conflict was worsened with the accusation of intelligence officers supporting the opposition movement of Khan and Qadri. But Masood added that Akhtar's appointment should settle the conflict.

TagsISI, Pakistan, spy unit, ISI chief, Rizwan Akhtar