Great day in history on Swat

The Swat Valley witnessed a great day in its history when on 22 Oct 2018, the Pakistan Army handed over the administrative powers of the Swat region to civilian authorities, ending a decade-long military operation to flush out the Taliban militants led by Mullah Fazlullah from the region. A ceremony was held at the Saidu Sharif airport, which was attended by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mehmood Khan, Peshawar Corps Commander Lt-Gen Nazeer Butt, provincial ministers and local elected representatives.

Speaking at the ceremony, Lt-Gen Butt said that peace had returned to Swat and the journey to progress continues. “From now on, civil administration and police will be responsible for security,” he added.

The corps commander said the Pakistan Army remained vigilant in the wake of threats. “Terrorists are still trying to launch attacks from across the border,” he said, adding that the border was being fortified with fencing.

The tyranny and barbarism of notorious terrorist had converted the scenic beautiful Swat to the valley of misery and massacres. Terrorists destroyed educational institutions and the socio-economic activities. However, the Pak armed forces, in collaboration with police, paramilitary forces and locals, fought the war with gallantry and determination and eradicated the menace from the entire valley.

The militancy in Swat was tackled through an operation in 2009. The operation was necessitated following barbaric practices adopted by Maulvi Fazlullah, the son-in-law of Sufi Muhammad, and his cohorts.

The people of the area and throughout Pakistan supported the armed forces in the operation that countered the TTP and its obnoxious practices of vengeful nature that had nothing to do with the religion. Also, the political parties in the country through an all-parties conference (APC) pledged to unite the nation against insurgency and terrorism in these regions. Within three months, Pakistan’s armed forces successfully tackled the threat posed by the foreign-funded and Indian RAW sponsored terrorists in Buner, Dir, Swat and other adjoining areas and successfully ejected them.

Needless to say the Pakistani armed forces fought valiantly against the zealous and fanatical gunmen and terrorists and ended their reign from the areas, eliminating their roots.

It should be noted that terrorism cannot be defeated by evading responsibilities and resorting to blame game as is being done by the players operating in the region, but can eliminated by determination and professionalism like the one displayed by Pakistan armed forces supplemented by the national resolve.

A full spectrum of threat demands comprehensive national response and the nation with Pakistan armed forces is fully engaged in enabling that response. India and Afghanistan have blamed Pakistan for supporting terror outfits to carry out attacks in their respective countries, whereas, the facts on the ground are totally different. India is sponsoring terrorism in the region using the Afghan soil with complete connivance of Afghan authorities. Pakistan's territory has never been allowed to be used against any other country and it expects the same in reciprocity.