Terrorists launched a raid on security forces’ check post in Shah Mardan area of District Kalat, where six terrorists were killed and seven security personnel besides the terror gang were martyred. Pakistan Army Spokesman said that country’s security forces, in cooperation with the nation, will not let anyone have easy go at creating disturbance in the peace, stability and progress of Balochistan.
Pakistan remains a completely devastated country by terrorism as, almost all big cities have been targeted. Nevertheless, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan remained at the forefront. Terrorist activities have made civilian victims of the Pakistani people in separatist, sectarian, ethnic, and religious extremism, who have been sponsored by hostile foreign states.
It has wreaked havoc in Pakistan with more than 80,000 people having been killed during the last two decades; meanwhile, 10,000 of the security personnel have also been killed. Its economy has suffered a loss of more than $150 billion. The world is quite aware that neighboring countries, including Afghanistan and India, are patronizing terrorism in Pakistan.
The situation is desperate with such domestic terrorists and their facilitators doing their work freely, causing much loss of lives through attacks that are well-thought out. Their internal facilitators are presently their greatest asset whereby they play a central role in the success of such attacks which cannot be ignored.
However, Pakistan has already handed over a dossier where hard proof, for example, bank accounts and financing by Indian nationals for terrorist groups, substantiates India’s financial aids to terrorism. It also mentioned the number and locations of the training camps provided to the TTP and Baloch separatists as well as some other insurgent organizations.
The Taliban government of Afghanistan, after assurances in this regard, expects that Afghan soil would never be used against Pakistan to foment terrorism. Nevertheless, recent attacks were largely carried out by Afghan nationals. Thus, the time has come to expedite the repatriation of illegal Afghan refugees, linking their return to the elimination of terrorist activity.
Unity is very essential in this war on terrorism. Their choices to identify which militant groups are “good” and which are “bad” is a sensitive issue that must be treated with care because, being armed groups, they may seem helpful when subscribed to the interest of a country but become a very serious threat once their usefulness wanes.
Terrorism has become much worse in Pakistan where militants are targeting not only security agencies like the army and police but also more organized and deadly attacks. Terrorists equipped with weapons left by U.S. and NATO forces and with experience fighting alongside the Taliban, are now causing far bigger casualties than before.
Terror activities have increased in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where instead of targeted killings or roadside bombings, major organized attacks on police stations and military check posts have increased. Now the local population is demanding stronger action against these terrorists because their daily life and business have also been very badly disrupted.
The terrorist attacks surge despite decades of fighting it and the horrific sacrifices. A question appears in this pretext: Is there some fault line in our counterterrorism strategy, which inhibits our efforts from turning out to be successful? Identifying and making amends with this fault line is the need of the hour as it impacts our international relations and makes it impossible for the revival of the national economy. Without stability, investment, and the security needed for growth, economic progress is impossible.
There is an overt contradiction: while citizens demand swift and decisive action against terrorists, some factions oppose military operations against them. This is an indication that with time, terrorists are always refining their strategies. From targeting poor students in religious seminaries, terrorists now employ a different tactic by targeting educated youth from universities and colleges.
As long as there are these ideological forces feeding into the sustenance of terrorism, the war against it will remain a hard one to win. The facilitators must be part of the counter-terrorism strategy as well as the “nurseries” that nurture young minds with extremist ideologies. While these militants were nurtured to fight for religious zeal, the same zeal must be used to fight dismantling their networks.
Only these terrorists, who have massacred thousands and broken peace, serve to further their own goals. Pakistan-the world’s only state founded in the name of Islam-has been used as a spectacle in the hands of these militants. Therefore, any strategy against terrorism should include force, but the political, economic, and social consequences cannot be ignored. Political aspect and public opinion are very important in this war. Political stability is the key to success; this can only be achieved when all parties come on one platform.