Operation Raddul Fassad's two-point strategy aimed to counter terrorism and violent extremism: DG ISPR

(Karachi) Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar has said that the strategy to launch operation Raddul Fasaad was aimed at peaceful, stable and normalised Pakistan. He added that the operation helped restore people's confidence in the state.

Addressing a media briefing in Rawalpindi on Monday, the DG ISPR said that Raddul Fassad rendered the terrorists and extremists completely ineffective and curtailed their freedom of action.

He said, “We wanted the people to start trusting the nation again and curtail the freedom of expression of anti-Pakistan forces.” He said every Pakistani is a sepoy of Raddul Fasaad.

He highlighted that terrorism and extremism can only be uprooted when law enforcement agencies work together with society.

Iftikhar pointed out that operation Radul Fasaad was launched with a two-point strategy to counter terrorism and violent extremism. “An ideology can only be countered by a superior ideology—a superior argument,” he remarked.

He said Pakistan's grand strategy in its war against terrorism was based on four concepts: Clear, hold, build and transfer.

He stated that the basic objective of the counterterrorism plan was that the use of power is the privilege of the state only; stability on the western zone through an effective border management system; and ending terrorists' support base across the country.

The DG ISPR said that during 2010 to 2017, we worked on the ‘clear and old phase’ which was regaining control of land from terrorists and restoring the writ of the state in merged districts.

He said in the past four years, more than 375,000 intelligence-based operations (IBO) were carried out under Raddul Fasaad in which the CTD, IB, ISI, MI, police, FC and Rangers all played a role. Of these, more than 34,000 IBOs were carried out in Punjab; over 150,000 in Sindh, more than 80,000 in Balochistan and in KP, more than 92,000.

"They include some major and important IBOs as well which helped in curbing urban terrorism and many terrorist networks were broken," Maj Gen Iftikhar said.

Regarding major IBOs carried out by security forces, he said the terrorists involved in the attack on a private hotel in Gwadar were killed in Balochistan; a suicide attack on an agricultural university was foiled in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; and the attacks on the Pakistan Stock Exchange and the Chinese consulate in Karachi were foiled in Sindh.

"In these four years, more than 5,000 threat alerts were issued and the majority of them were neutralised before they materialised. During Raddul Fasaad, the Khyber-IV operation was also carried out, which was aimed at clearing the Rajgal valley and making the Afghan border safe," he said, adding that last year in August, an operation was carried out in North Waziristan was conducted in a "most inhospitable terrain".

The spokesperson said the armed forces and the masses have been successfully facing national security challenges and will continue to tackle them as a nation in the days to come.