Mohamed Hashim Mohd Ali

Mohamed Hashim bin Mohd Ali (10 April 1937 – 1 October 2025) was a Malaysian military officer who served as the Chief of Defence Forces from 1987 to 1992, and as the Chief of Army from 1985 to 1987. He was the brother of Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali, the wife of former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad.

Quick facts Chief of Defence Forces, Preceded by ...

Yang Amat Berbahagia Tun Mohamed Hashim Mohd Ali SSM PGAT PMN PSM SPMS SIMP SPTS DHMS DPMS DSDK JMN KMN AMN ABS PKB PPA PPM PJM


Chief of Defence Forces
In office 6 October 1987 – 11 April 1992
Preceded by	Mohd Ghazali Che Mat
Succeeded by	Yaacob Mohd Zain
Chief of Army
In office 1 November 1985 – 6 October 1987

Personal details
Born	(1937-04-10)10 April 1937 Ipoh, Perak, Federated Malay States
Died	1 October 2025(2025-10-01) (aged 88) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Resting place	Raudhatul Sakinah Islam Cemetery, Sungai Besi, Kuala Lumpur
Spouse	Majmin Yahaya^[1]
Relations	Ismail Mohamed Ali (brother) Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali (sister) Mahathir Mohamad (brother-in-law)
Children	3
Military service
Allegiance	Malaysia
Branch	Malaysian Army
Service years	1957–1992
Rank	General
Conflicts	First Malayan Emergency Second Malayan Emergency

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Background

Mohamed Hashim Mohd Ali was born on 10 April 1937 at Ipoh, Perak to Mohd Ali Mohd Taib and Khalijah Ahmad, ethnic Malay parents of Minangkabau descent from Klang, Selangor with ancestral roots in Rao Mapat Tunggul, West Sumatra, Indonesia. He was the youngest child of his parents.

Soon after finishing primary school, he enrolled in Institut Victoria, Kuala Lumpur from 1949 to 1955. Whilst schooling there, he was the captain of the hockey team and also represented the school in swimming events.

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Military career

Summarize

Perspective

Hashim Mohd Ali entered the military as a career. He became a cadet at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst around 1955 to 1957. In December 1957, he was commissioned as a junior officer in the Royal Malay Regiment and was assigned the duty of the 3rd battalion.

He was also the commanding officer of the 5th Royal Malay Regiment while on duty in Sarawak. After being appointed Brigadier General, he was appointed Commanding Officer of the Rejang Area Security Command or RASCOM in Sarawak, where he managed to help restore peace and security and stability in the area.

In 1980, after attending a course at the National Defence College, India, he was appointed Chief of Staff at the Ministry of Defence in the rank of a Major General.

In 1982, he took over the charge of the Second Infantry Division based in Penang Island. In carrying out his duties as the Commanding Officer of the division, he established a close relationship with the Chief of Command of Region 4, Royal Thai Army. As a result of the close relationship and increased cooperation between the two sides, the military pressure given has crippled the ability of the Communist terrorists to carry out their armed rebellion until finally signing the peace agreement of Hat Yai in 1989.

After relinquishing his duties as the commanding officer of the 2nd Division Regiment, he was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army in 1984.

In November 1985, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Army. In October 1987, he took over the position of Chief of Defence Forces until his retirement in April 1992 upon turning 55 years old, after serving for 35 years in the armed forces. General Hashim was the signatory of the Hat Yai Peace Agreement on behalf of the Malaysian Government in his duties as Chief of Defense Forces.

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After retirement

After retirement, Hashim was appointed a director in several companies listed on Bursa Kuala Lumpur.

Hashim was appointed chief executive officer and chairman of SUKOM Ninety Eight Berhad, a company established by the Government of Malaysia to organize and manage the XVI Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur which was held from 11 to 21 September 1998.

Personal life and death

Hashim Mohd Ali was the youngest among his siblings, which included:

Tun Ismail Mohamed Ali (1915–1998), his eldest brother, served as the Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia from 1962 to 1980 and also as the Chairman of Permodalan Nasional Berhad.
Tan Sri Dato' Paduka Datin Dr. Saleha Mohamed Ali (1923–2011), his eldest sister, was a medical doctor.
Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali (born 1926), his second sister, is a doctor by profession and the wife of Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia.
Tan Sri Dato' Seri Ahmad Razali Mohamad Ali (1928–2001) his second eldest brother, served as the Menteri Besar of Selangor from 1982 to 1986.
Dato' Jhaffar Mohamad Ali (1932–2003), his youngest elder brother, was a reputed businessman.

Hashim died from a stroke in Kuala Lumpur, on 1 October 2025, at the age of 88.^[2] He was buried at Raudhatul Sakinah Cemetery, Sungai Besi, Kuala Lumpur.^[3]

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