Terror threat

A surge in terrorist activities by the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has prompted senators and the people of Swat to sound alarm. The Senate witnessed a heated debate when senators from both sides of the aisle expressed their concerns over recent developments in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, especially in Swat and its adjoining areas. Senators have demanded a briefing over a recent threat alert that the interior ministry issued about heightened risk of terrorist attacks by the banned outfit. Since the activities of the Taliban have attracted much attention during the past couple of months, it has become a point of public concern that the government and state institutions must address at once. There is an immediate need for the interior ministry to take parliament into confidence. People in Swat have also carried out protests this week to demand the elimination of anti-peace and anti-state elements from Swat district, warning that if the state does not take action, the residents of Swat will take up arms. That the people of Swat, who have borne the brunt of Taliban rule and fought bravely against them, have to come out on the streets and demand that the state protect them should be a moment of shame for the government and state whose responsibility it is to protect its citizens.

This is a serious matter that has troubled Pakistan for over two decades now. Such issues call for a need to take parliament on board and no talks with the banned outfit should have begun without an explicit consent from parliament. The disclosure about dialogue with the TTP had come as a surprise. The speed with which the TTP, the Islamic State Khorasan and associated militant groups are now gaining territory as well as the means to conduct targeted attacks against the security forces and civilians is alarming. Pakistan fought a long and hard battle for over a decade to rid our soil of terrorist groups. But after the Afghan Taliban’s rise in the neighbourhood, these groups have had their power restored to a large extent.

On Saturday, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa stressed the need for regional peace. However, he said that our desire for peace must not be construed as our weakness. The army chief’s words should serve as a warning to all militant groups that are threatening the country’s hard-earned peace. We hope that the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan will not mean the rise of the TTP in Pakistan. As a democratic country that has fought valiantly against terrorism and sacrificed more than 80,000 lives, we deserve peace and security. How long will we expect our people to lay down their lives in this fight against terrorism? When a large number of people take to streets in Swat demanding the government to take decisive action against militant elements in the valley, the government should take it pretty seriously.