Terror report

Ever since Operation Zarb-e-Azb was launched in 2014, there has been a perceptible decline in militant attacks almost every year. The TTP and its allies have been driven out of their safe havens and mostly forced to flee across the border to Afghanistan. According to a report by the Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies, in 2018 militant attacks dropped by 29 percent from the preceding year. While this shows that militant groups are not as potent as they once were, it is no cause for complacency. Pakistan still suffered through 262 attacks which killed close to 600 people. Most worryingly, militant groups were at their most potent in the run-up to July’s general elections. They went after high-profile targets, killing the ANP’s Haroon Bilour, the PTI’s Ikramullah Gandapur and more than 150 people in bombings at election rallies in Mastung and Bannu.Clearly, despite being weakened, militant groups can still strike at any time no matter what security precautions are taken. There may have been victories on the battlefield but the follow-through has been weak. Successive governments have promised to strengthen the National Counter Terrorism Authority, as called for by the National Action Plan, and it seemed as if Prime Minister Imran Khan may just do that when he decided to chair the body. But, once again, Nacta seems to exist in a state of stasis.There are three separate challenges still to be overcome if we are to defeat militancy. The first is to forge an alliance with Afghanistan so that the remnants of the TTP can be prevented from crossing the border to launch attacks. Earning the cooperation of the Afghan government will require some quid pro quo – most likely taking on the Afghan Taliban and Haqqani Network on our own soil to show that the two countries can work in a mutually beneficial way. Then we have to dismantle the Islamic State based in Pakistan. This terrorist group has been responsible for nearly as many attacks as the TTP and tends to be even more ruthless. It is believed to have small cells in all provinces so taking it on will require better intelligence-gathering and small, targeted operations. Third, there has been an uptick in violence by Baloch separatist groups, and they have also announced their intention to go after Chinese targets and interests; there was even an attack on the Chinese consulate in Karachi. Tackling separatist militancy requires a different approach, as the PIPS report recommends. The government needs to address the legitimate grievances of the Baloch people to drain support from separatist groups. We are already too preoccupied fighting the TTP and IS to open another front in the war against militancy.

from The News International - Editorial http://bit.ly/2TA0zRc