The threat of terrorism from across the western border shows no signs of receding as two separate attacks this week martyred at least 10 troops and five civilians. Eight troops were first martyred on the night of July 15 (Monday), which saw terrorists from the Afghanistan-based Hafiz Gul Bahadur group trying to enter the Bannu Cantonment. The attempt to enter the cantonment was thwarted by the security forces, forcing the terrorists to ram an explosive-laden vehicle into the perimeter wall of the cantonment. Ten terrorists were also killed by the security forces, preventing many more innocent lives from being lost. The second attack took place at Kirri Shamozai in Dera Ismail Khan at night between July 15 and 16 (late Monday and early Tuesday) when terrorists opened fire at a Rural Health Centre, martyring five civilians including two children and two lady health workers. During the clearance operation by security forces in response to the attack, two soldiers were also martyred while three terrorists were reportedly killed. These attacks come less than a week after the release of a United Nations monitoring report which claims that the TTP is now the largest terror group active in Afghanistan and enjoys operational and logistical support from the Afghan Taliban despite its attacks against Pakistan.
The report also affirms many other things that Islamabad has asserted in recent months such as that the Afghan Taliban takeover has given the TTP access to high-calibre Nato weaponry left behind after its hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and that the TTP has often utilized Afghans to launch attacks in Pakistan. While the latter has called for ‘robust action’ by the interim Afghan government against the perpetrators of the Bannu Cantonment attack and summoned the deputy head of mission of the embassy of Afghanistan in Islamabad to deliver a strong demarche, the Afghan Taliban have not yielded to such pressure in the past and it would be quite surprising if they would now.
While attempts to get the Afghan Taliban to take up their obligations to expel and/or counteract any terror groups operating on their soil and getting them to understand the corrosive impact terrorism has on regional development and stability remain important, internal security measures are what will likely make the most difference in the long term. Those on the front lines of Pakistan’s war against terrorism need all the help the state can give them in terms of training, resources and funding. This includes the police, which has the capability of foiling terror activities if given the proper support. It is also important to remember that if hard power alone made all the difference, the terror situation would not be what it is today. While previous anti-terror operations have been very successful in curbing the incidence of terror attacks, the groups, outfits and ideologies behind terror tend to endure. Countering them will require changing the political and socioeconomic dynamics of the areas in which terrorist activities and attacks are most prevalent. It is not a coincidence that these tend to be the most deprived, underserved and neglected areas of the country and changing this dynamic will be crucial to defeating terror. And although it has been stated many times before, it is worth repeating again since many in the political sphere seem to have short memories: negotiating with and trying to placate terrorists simply does not work. Those who have pursued this strategy in the past are partly responsible for the terror resurgence we are dealing with now.