Pakistan’s invisible coup: How Asim Munir has become country’s de facto ruler, Musharraf 2.0 style

Pakistan may not have witnessed tanks rolling into Islamabad this year, but make no mistake: a coup is already underway, one executed in silence and secrecy by the man in uniform who calls the shots. Field Marshal Asim Munir, once hailed as a stabilising figure, has now transformed into the ultimate puppeteer of Pakistan’s state machinery. Having crushed his only real political threat, Imran Khan, Munir has installed loyalists across the government, the military, and even foreign service ranks. What Pakistan is witnessing today is not the restoration of democracy, but the quiet consolidation of a personal dictatorship, wrapped neatly in the facade of civilian rule.

In July, whispers spread across Islamabad’s corridors of power that Munir was preparing to overthrow the government. But he d