This past Sunday saw six security personnel martyred in separate terrorist attacks in Balochistan within the same day. The incidents come amidst a 79 per cent increase in terrorist attacks in the first half of 2023 compared to the corresponding period last year; and there have been 271 terrorist attacks resulting in 389 deaths and injuring 656 people this year. This data has been released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), which has also documented in its report that the majority of this year’s attacks and deaths have occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which has suffered 174 reported attacks leading to 266 deaths. When compared to the latter half of 2022, attacks in the country have increased by 18 per cent, which is much lower when compared to the first half of last year, showing that the spike in militant attacks can be dated back to the second half of 2022. This also goes to show that the increase in terror attacks this year is not anomalous but part of a growing trend, one that appears to be accelerating.
It is crucial to beef-up security measures in response to this new wave of terror. Successive governments have promised to strengthen the National Counter Terrorism Authority, as called for by the National Action Plan, but over the years it has seemed to exist in a state of stasis. If terrorism is to be truly eliminated, it is vital that the government follow through on all planks of the National Action Plan, from displaying zero-tolerance for extremism from any group to better harnessing our intelligence resources as a preventative measure. This also means strengthening the resources and training available to the police under it as they are our first line of defence against militancy.
Given the timing of the spike and the geographical concentration of the attacks in KP, our diplomacy with Afghanistan will need to be a key part of the counterterrorism strategy. Convincing our neighbours to root out any militants along the western border will be crucial to preventing further attacks. There is also a need to look at the political climate, which has deteriorated considerably over the past year or so. Without a stable government it will be nigh impossible to implement a consistent and far-reaching national-security plan. The people living in Pakistan's 'peripheral regions' need some normalcy. Years of bloodshed and a state of war have deprived them of so many opportunities. Evidence suggests that appeasement or leniency with terrorists and militants does not work in our favour. It is encouraging the state too has realized this and has decided there will be no tolerance for terror activities nor any appeasement with militants. For years, the state ignored warnings by civil rights movements in Waziristan and the larger Khyber Pakhtunkhwa about the possible return of terror groups in the region. Now when terror has again walked through the door, counterterrorism needs to move onto a new footing. We are battling both domestic terror attacks and a belligerent border situation on the west, along with the forever threat of India using any such instability on our land. With Nacta, a robust foreign policy, a determined effort to shun any appeasement of militancy, and combining military-led efforts with a healthy input of civilian policymaking, there is no reason why militancy cannot be taken on by the state.