EDITORIAL: Tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) face a resurgent wave of terrorism from Afghanistan-based TTP militants. According to a statement issued by the military’s public relations wing, ISPR, last Friday a young officer Lt Uzair Mehmood Malik while leading his troops in one of the three locations in the Tirah Valley of Khyber district, where security forces exchanged fire with militants, killed four militants before he was critically wounded. On Sunday he passed away at Peshawar’s Combined Military Hospital.
In two other encounters with militants on Sunday in northern Waziristan locations, one security officer embraced martyrdom and four others, including an officer, were injured. A few days earlier, two South Waziristan sessions judges and an acting district judge of Tank narrowly escaped but two policemen were martyred when their convoy came under a gun attack in Lakki Marwat. Police posts have also repeatedly been attacked.
The sudden rise in militant activity during the recent months, in part, is the result of the dubious agreement brokered by the Afghan Taliban that allowed many TTP fighters to return to reintegrate in local society; instead they are reported to have established control in several southern districts of KP from where they launch attacks on security forces as well as civilian targets. Although the Kabul government denies the presence of TTP militants on its soil, it is known to offer them and al-Qaeda not only safe havens but also material assistance. As a new UN report notes the TTP, an alliance of extremist groups, is “the largest group” operating in Afghanistan with estimated strength of 6,000-6,500 fighters and receives growing support from that country’s Taliban rulers to conduct cross-border attacks in Pakistan. No amount of persuasion or pressure by Islamabad has helped to have the Afghan Taliban take action against these militants since they share an ideological bond with them and also owe them a debt for lending a helping hand in the war against US-led NATO forces. Yet, Islamabad along with other regional countries, especially China — with which the Kabul government has burgeoning economic and diplomatic relations — can work to convince the Afghan rulers at the very least to move the TTP militants along with their families away from border areas with Pakistan and settle them in their own country .
Pakistan also needs to put its own house in order. The recently announced counter-terrorism campaign ‘Azm-e-Istehkam’ has met with resistance from almost all KP-based political parties for fear that, like during an earlier operation, it would cause mass displacement of people. While the ongoing kinetic action is necessary, other policy options to deal with issues engendering militancy ought to be pursued. In a bid to discourage any support for the TTP, a few days ago the government issued a notification declaring it “Fitna al-Khawarij” with the advice that the term “Khariji” be used with the name of these terrorists to expose their true identity. That may be useful as a counter-narrative. But more important is the need to channelize substantial resources to the troubled tribal districts for provision of decent healthcare services and education as well as better law and order so that the young people have something productive to look forward to, and do not get attracted by violent extremists.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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