Terrorists blew up a vehicle with explosives in Tehsil Shawal of North Waziristan, as a result of which 11 workers in the vehicle were killed. According to government officials, there were 13 workers in the vehicle, 2 people were seriously injured in the explosion. All the deceased belonged to Makin and Wana tehsils of North Waziristan. Meanwhile, a fire broke out as a result of a collision between a pick-up van carrying diesel drums and a passenger coach near Pindi Bhatian on Faisalabad Motorway. 16 passengers were killed and 10 were injured, women and children were also among the dead. which seems to be emerging rapidly in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which was also protested in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the position of political and social circles also came out that “We will not tolerate more war and terrorism on our land.” Nor will they allow any kind of compromise on peace. Undoubtedly, the soldiers of the armed forces of Pakistan had achieved complete success in the elimination of terrorism by sacrificing their lives, but the hand of our neighboring countries in its resurgence is clearly visible, so we have to fight terrorism with public support.

An effective action plan should be adopted to root out this scourge. It should be remembered that national development and prosperity is conditional on peace in the country.

However, the recent accident in Pindi Bhattian seems to be a precursor to human catastrophe, we need strict enforcement of traffic rules to avoid such tragic accidents.

On the other hand the re-emerging challenge of terrorism in the country is certainly serious, but the good news is that the brave men of the Pakistan Army are continuously carrying out successful operations against the terrorists.  Two such incidents happened earlier this month. One of them was the terrorist attack on Chinese engineers in Gwadar, which was foiled, while in Bajaur, six terrorists were killed and many were injured in an operation based on the intelligence of the security forces, and a soldier from Kohat district, Muhammad Shoaib, embraced martyrdom.

Terrorists used small arms and hand grenades in the Gwadar attack. Suicide jackets, arms and ammunition were seized from terrorists in Bajaur operation. Majeed Brigade of Balochistan Liberation Army has accepted the responsibility of Gwadar attack, while the Chinese Consulate has condemned this attack and has demanded to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens.  What is the demand? This demand is undoubtedly quite legitimate, the security arrangements for Chinese citizens must be further improved. The entire Pakistani nation is grateful to the Chinese leadership and people for the determination and courage with which they are active in continuing development activities in Pakistan and are also sacrificing their lives and property for this purpose. Along with continuing effective operations against terrorists, it is also important to address the causes that are causing terrorism.

More steps are required by the Afghan government to stop the activities of the outlawed TTP, for which more effective use of diplomatic channels is required, while solving the problem of missing persons, the root cause of anti-state sentiments in Balochistan should be immediately eliminated. Pakistan forces are our defense fence and the guarantor of its security and stability, who have thwarted every move of the enemy with their best professional skills and are always ready to fulfill the requirements of the defense of the homeland. The long war against terrorism was won by sacrificing thousands of young men. Even today, our forces are fighting against terrorist groups, the latest demonstration of which is the foiling of an attack in Balochistan’s Zhob Garrison.

Recently, the terrorists had tried to enter the installations. They were stopped by the security personnel on duty. In the fierce exchange of fire, 4 soldiers were martyred and 5 were injured, who later succumbed to their injuries.  In this way, the number of martyrs became 9. 7 terrorists were also killed.  The entire nation has paid tribute to the martyrs as  they saved the country from a huge loss of life by sacrificing their lives. The nation can never forget these sacrifices. Recent incidents of terrorism indicate that the activities of miscreants have increased, but the security forces have also thwarted their nefarious intentions.  In Lahore, CTD arrested 5 terrorists including the main commander of the banned organization. According to a report, there were 271 militant attacks in the first half of 2023. As a result of the operations of the security forces, 236 suspected terrorists were killed and 295 were arrested.  More than 77 operations are being conducted on a daily basis by the Pakistan Army, Police and Intelligence Agencies and other law enforcement agencies to deal with the menace of terrorism. The forces and the nation are determined to defeat the nefarious efforts of the enemy.

The main reason behind the rise in terrorists acts in Pakistan is the use of Afghan soil for terror in Pakistan. Since the fall of Kabul to Taliban in 2021, terrorism has increased in Pakistan which can be gauged from the 2022 data which revealed a 27 percent more terrorist incidents took place in Pakistan as compared to 2021. The current year has also recorded the intensity of lethal accidents and January 2023 was termed to be the bloodiest month in which 134 people lost lives due to terrorists acts while and 254 injured in as many as 44 terrorist strikes. The terrorists are still active and resort to carrying out attacks in KP and Balochistan from time to time. On the average, three to four attacks took place in Pakistan every month which indicates that militants are still very much active. where the terrorists and militants organizations have regrouped after the take-over of Kabul by Taliban in August 2021 and they are involved in cross border attacks in Pakistan. There is no secret that Afghan soil is being used by terrorists’ groups against Pakistan and the number of attacks across the border in Pakistan from Afghanistan are the cases in point. The security situation in Pakistan has seriously deteriorated after the regrouping of TTP and another militant organization after the Taliban Govt in Afghanistan and  become so alarming that traders and professional have started leaving the country, shifting to either abroad due to prevailing sense of insecurity. Had the Afghan government taken timely action against the terrorists, situation would not have worsened to such an extent in Pakistan.

The cross border attacks in Pakistan are a common case from Afghan soil during the last two years. Though there has been a little bit improvement in the overall situation, but the situation is still far from normal. In January last, Afghan Govt spokesperson said that Daesh terrorists who were responsible for the attack on the Pak embassy had been killed by Afghan security set up. This statement indicates that Daesha and other terrorist’s groups are present tin Afghanistan.

Published in The Daily National Courier, August, 22 2023

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