341 terrorists killed in 2,801 intelligence operations over 10 months, interior ministry tells NA

The interior ministry has revealed that 341 terrorists were killed in 2,801 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) across 10 months from January 2024.

Meanwhile, the military’s media wing said today that 43 terrorists were eliminated in IBOs since December 9 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

The country has lately witnessed a sharp uptick in the number of attacks targeting security forces, other law enforcement agencies, and security checkpoints, particularly in Balochistan and KP.

Attacks escalated after the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government in 2022 and vowed to target security forces.

According to the responses submitted by the interior ministry to Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen MNA Hameed Hussain in Thursday’s National Assembly session on the question of steps taken by the government to improve the security situation, 2,801 IBOs were conducted from January to October as part of the state’s counter-terrorism efforts.

“These operations resulted in the elimination of 341 terrorists, underscoring the effectiveness of proactive measures in dismantling terrorist networks and neutralising threats to national security.”

The ministry said that four more “terrorist organisations” — Zainabiyoun Brigade, Majeed Brigade, Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group and Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement — were proscribed in the 10 months, bringing the total to 82.

It added that 800 individuals were placed on the Fourth Schedule under the Anti-Terrorism Act as part of “vigilant monitoring of individuals suspected of involvement in terrorist activities” with 400 from Punjab, 203 from KP, 173 from Balochistan, 21 from Sindh and three from Gilgit-Baltistan.

Regarding countering terror financing, the ministry said 2,350 cases were registered with 2,466 individuals apprehended and 526 convicted and a total recovery of Rs581.206 million.

While addressing a question on the reasons for the worsening law and order situation in the country, the ministry said 1,566 terrorism incidents occurred in the 10 months with 948 in KP, 532 in Balochistan, 24 in Sindh, 10 in Punjab and two in the Islamabad Capital Territory.

The ministry said the incidents led to a total of 924 martyrdoms and 2,121 injured.

“Of these, 573 were law enforcement agencies (LEAs), accounting for 62 per cent of total martyrdoms, and 1,353 LEAs were injured, accounting for approximately 64pc of total injuries. Additionally, 351 civilians were martyred and 768 civilians were injured. This data indicates that law enforcement agencies have been primarily targeted by terrorists across Pakistan during the last ten months.”

The ministry explained that there was a “significant rise in terrorism incidents and evolving terrorism patterns have been consistently observed” since the Afghan Taliban’s August 2021 takeover of Kabul, particularly in the operations of the TTP in KP, the Baloch nationalist insurgency in Balochistan and ethno-nationalist violence in Sindh.

It added that the TTP had recently shifted its targets, now focusing more on military and law enforcement officers, as well as security installations and critical infrastructure, rather than targeting the civilian population.

“Following its territorial losses, the central leadership of the [TTP] is now based in Afghanistan, posing ongoing security concerns and challenges for Pakistan. The victory of Tehreek-i-Taliban Afghanistan (TTA) in the war on terror has emboldened TTP militants to continue their activities in Pakistan without fear.”

The ministry also said that the unstable security environment in Afghanistan had facilitated the consolidation of various international terrorist organisations (ITOs), enhancing their presence, resources, and ability to project influence beyond Afghan borders. “The inaction and inability to decisively counter these ITOs have allowed them to pose an increasingly serious and transnational threat,” it added.

The response said that the TTP continued to enjoy freedom of movement and operation in the border areas between Afghanistan and Pakistan with the Afghan Taliban government appearing to “lack effective control over these regions, allowing the TTP to maintain a presence and conduct activities.

“The [ttp] is also involved in border infiltration, sending small groups of individuals to transport militants across the border from Afghanistan to Pakistan for subsequent terrorist activities.

“Recent terrorist incidents indicate a growing trend of Afghan nationals, previously involved in armed activities within Afghanistan, joining other terrorist groups such as the [TTP] to support their operations in Pakistan. The involvement of Afghan nationals in TTP activities demonstrates the expansion of their support and their alignment with groups having a regional agenda, despite these groups not being directly opposed to Afghanistan.”

The ministry also pointed out that the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan resulted in a substantial amount of advanced weaponry being abandoned with terrorist organizations such as the TTP having seized them, thus bolstering their operational capacity and presenting an increased risk to regional security.

The interior ministry cautioned that terrorist groups posed a significant threat to Chinese development projects such as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), as evidenced by the growing number of attacks on individuals involved in these projects. “These attacks reveal the terrorists’ determination to disrupt state-to-state relations by targeting the interests of one country within the territory of another,” it said.

43 terrorists killed since Dec 9: ISPR

Separately, a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said a total of 43 terrorists, 18 in KP and 25 in Balochistan. were “sent to hell” by security forces during extensive IBOs conducted in the provinces since Dec 9, causing a “major setback” to the TTP and other terrorist groups operating in Balochistan.

The ISPR said that between Thursday and Friday nights, security forces conducted an IBO in KP’s Lakki Marwat district and effectively engaged the terrorist location, killing six.

It added that security forces successfully neutralised 10 terrorists today after intense exchanges of fire in two separate IBOs conducted in Balochistan’s Musa Khel and Panjgur districts.

The ISPR said the operations would continue till the restoration of peace in the areas and the elimination of terrorists as “the security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country.”