New tactics

The Global Terrorist Index (GTI) 2025 ranked Pakistan second in terms of impact of terrorism on a country, with the country suffering five consecutive years of increases in terrorism-related deaths. Last year, 1081 Pakistanis lost their lives to terror, a 45 per cent increase from 2023. Almost all of these deaths took place in just two provinces: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. The current year seems to have brought no reprieve from the terror resurge, with the Jaffer Express attack reminding the country just how grave its security challenges really are. While the government has vowed to initiate a crackdown on militants, this is not a permanent or sustainable solution to the problem.

It has to be coupled with meaningful engagement with neighbouring countries, principally India and Afghanistan. The government also needs to work harder to win the support of the ordinary people of KP and Balochistan as, without popular support in the most terror-affected areas, it will be hard for any security strategy to work in the long run. This is a serious problem and we should use new ways to handle it because old tactics will not work.

Shahid Hussain

Karachi