Islamabad:The third quarter of 2024 saw a sharp increase in fatalities of terrorist violence and counter-terrorism campaigns with a 90% surge in violence.
This was stated in the Third Quarterly Report (Q3) issued by Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) here Monday on security landscape. According to the report, total fatalities from three quarters of this year have now surpassed the total fatalities recorded for the entire 2023. A total of 722 people were killed, including civilians, security personnel, and outlaws, while 615 others were wounded in as many as 328 incidents recorded during the period under review. Nearly 97% of these fatalities occurred in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan - marking the highest percentage in a decade, and over 92% of these incidents of terror attacks and security forces’ operations were recorded in the same provinces.
The total fatalities from three quarters of this year have now surpassed the total fatalities recorded for the entire 2023, the number of fatalities rose to at least 1534 in the first three quarters compared to 1,523 in 2023.
Despite the security forces’ continued anti-terror campaign -- on the average at least 112 intelligence-based operations daily (as claimed by ISPR chief Maj Gen Ahmed Sharif on July 22), the state writ over vast swaths of Balochistan and KP considerably deteriorated -- evidenced in the staggering numbers of victims – both security and non-security Pakistanis.
Open outrage by political leaders, people at large and even police – particularly in Lakki Marwat, Bannu, and Swat – against the growing incidence of target-killings and the helplessness of the civilian law-enforcement also underscores the aggravating security situation, with police increasingly expressing distrust in the military's control of anti-terror operations. This invariably eroded the state authority and widened the wedge between the public and the security apparatus.
Meanwhile, terrorist groups continue to reorganise and beef up their ranks. Unverified reports indicate that the number of militant groups aligned with the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) swelled to 60, with the latest addition being members of the Naeem Bukhari group from Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, based in Karachi.
Most of the terror attacks remained unclaimed by terrorist or insurgent groups, likely for tactical reasons. However, some groups did take responsibility for some incidents, including the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), United Baloch Army (UBA), Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Gul Bahadur Group. The Iran-based militant group Jaish-ul-Adl is also suspected of involvement in the killing of five Afghan nationals, whose dead bodies were discovered hanging from electric poles in the Chagai District. Additionally, both Daesh (Islamic State) and its regional affiliate, Islamic State Pakistan Province (ISPP), claimed responsibility for one attack each.