Abbas Raza HI(M) SI(M) TI(M) (Urdu: عباس رضا; born 16 May 1955), was a retired vice admiral in the Pakistan Navy who served as Commander, Pakistan Fleet from 2010 until his retirement in 2012.


Abbas Raza

V-Adm. Abbas Raza addressing a press conference during multinational naval exercise AMAN 2011
Birth nameAbbas Raza
Born (1955-05-16) May 16, 1955 (age 69)
Lahore, Pakistan
DiedAt Home
Allegiance Pakistan
Service / branchOps  Pakistan Navy
Years of service1973–2012
RankVice admiral
CommandsCommander Pakistan Fleet
DCNS (Operations) at Navy NHQ
DG Joint Trig. at Joint Staff HQ
Commander Karachi coast
DCNS (Projects) at Navy NHQ
OTC 9th Auxiliary Squadron
Battles / warsKargil war in 1999
Indo-Pakistani standoff in 2001
Indo-Pakistani standoff in 2008
Piracy off the coast of Somalia

War in North-West Pakistan

AwardsHilal-e-Imtiaz (Military)Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Military)Tamgha-e-Imtiaz (Military)Sword of Honor
Other workDirector of PMC, the Bahria Security and Systems.[1]

Biography

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Abbas Raza was born on 16 May 1955 in Lahore, Punjab in Pakistan where he secured his matriculation, and joined the Pakistan Navy in June 1973.[2] He was directed to attend the Pakistan Naval Academy in Karachi, and passed out with communications at the top of his class when he was conferred the coveted Sword of Honor in 1975.[2] He was qualified as the surface officer and served in the Surface Command of the Navy.[2][3]

He gained commissioned in the Naval Operations Branch as Sub-Lieutenant, and was later sent to attend and complete the staff course at the Royal Naval Staff College in Greenwich in the United Kingdom.[4] He later went to attend the National Defence University (NDU) in Islamabad and graduated with MSc in Defence studies.[5]

As Commander, he commanded the boat squadron, and held the commands of the PNS Badr and Tippu Sultan as Captain in 1990s.[5] In 2003, Capt. Raza was posted at the Pakistan Embassy in Muscat in Oman as a defence attaché.: 514 [6] Capt. Raza also briefly tenured at the Pakistan Embassy in Paris as an air attaché to French Air Force.[5] Upon returning to Pakistan, Cdre. Abbas Raza was appointed to command the 9th Auxiliary Squadron, and briefly tenured as a military secretary to the office of the chief of naval staff at the Navy NHQ in Islamabad as two-star and three-star rank appointments.[7] Rear-Admiral Raza's other appointment at the Navy NHQ also included his role as DCNS (Projects), DNCS (Operations) as well as being appointed as the Director-General of the Joint Warfare and Training (DG Joint Trig.) at the Joint Staff HQ in Rawalpindi.[2]

In 2010, Vice-Admiral Raza took over the command of the Pakistan Fleet as its senior fleet commander, and later directed to command the Karachi coast as its field commander, COMKAR, and was responsible for naval units stationed in Karachi in 2011.[3] In 2011, Raza faced severe criticism from news media pundits of failing to prevent terrorist attack on naval installations, and reportedly was not investigated in this incident by the Naval Intelligence and the Navy's crime branch.[8]

In 2011, Raza was among the four senior admirals who were in the race for the promotion to be promoted as a four-star admiral in the Navy, included with seniority:[9]

In 2012, Raza retired from his military service, and eventually joining the Bahria Security System, a private military company specializing in escort and security, as its Managing Director.[1][better source needed]

Raza died on 13 February 2023.[10][11]

Awards and decorations

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Hilal-e-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Crescent of Excellence)

Sitara-e-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Star of Excellence)

Tamgha-e-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Medal of Excellence)

Tamgha-e-Baqa

(Nuclear Test Medal)

1998

Tamgha-e-Istaqlal Pakistan

(Escalation with India Medal)

2002

10 Years Service Medal
20 Years Service Medal 30 Years Service Medal 35 Years Service Medal Tamgha-e-Sad Saala Jashan-e-

Wiladat-e-Quaid-e-Azam

(100th Birth Anniversary of

Muhammad Ali Jinnah)

1976

Hijri Tamgha

(Hijri Medal)

1979

Jamhuriat Tamgha

(Democracy Medal)

1988

Qarardad-e-Pakistan Tamgha

(Resolution Day

Golden Jubilee Medal)

1990

Tamgha-e-Salgirah Pakistan

(Independence Day

Golden Jubilee Medal)

1997

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Bahria Security Systems & Services". www.bahriasecurity.com. Bahria Security Systems & Services. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d et.a., staff. "Vice Adm. Abbas Raza". www.petaro.org. Petaro. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  3. ^ a b Newspaper, the (1 November 2011). "New Comkar". DAWN.COM. Dawn Newspaper. Dawn Newspaper. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  4. ^ From the Newspaper, staff (2 November 2011). "Promotion: Abbas takes charge as new commander | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. The Express Tribune. The Express Tribune. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Abbas Raza promoted as rear admiral". DAWN.COM. Dawn Newspaper. Dawn Newspaper. 16 January 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  6. ^ Jane, Frederick Thomas (2003). Jane's Fighting Ships. S. Low, Marston & Company. ISBN 9780710625465. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  7. ^ "Vice Admiral Abbas takes over as PN Karachi commander". www.pakistantoday.com.pk. 3 November 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  8. ^ "Controversy surrounds appointment of next Pakistan Naval Chief". 27 September 2011. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  9. ^ our staff reporter, The Nation (28 September 2011). "4 names forwarded for new naval chief". The Nation. The Nation. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  10. ^ Newspaper, the (30 November 2010). "New fleet commander". DAWN.COM. Dawn Newspaper. Dawn Newspaper. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  11. ^ "Vice Adm. Abbas Raza" (tml). petarians.net. The Petarian Association. 25 November 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
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