2024-07-08 19:46:32
Islamabad: Pakistan is preparing for a new battle against terrorist organizations, especially the TTP. Citing the attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the last few months, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Chief Khawaja Mohammad Asif has talked about retaliatory attacks. In a recent interview, Asif threatened the TTP, saying that we will not feed them cakes and pastries. If there is an attack, we will also retaliate. He has also accepted Pakistan’s responsibility for the drone attacks on TTP camps in Afghanistan in 2021 for the first time. Although Asif has shown a tough stand for the TTP, it will not be easy for Pakistan to once again carry out drone attacks on the border. Before launching such a campaign, it will have to overcome public opposition against the anti-terror operation. This will fuel the anger of the people, especially in the border areas, who will be most affected by any fight.
The South China Morning Post report says that in case of any military operation, the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fear mass displacement like in 2007 to 2016. At that time, the conflict between the Pak Army and TTP destroyed the homes and jobs of a large number of people. In such a situation, the talk of any anti-terror operation scares the common people. However, Pakistan PM Shahbaz Sharif has assured the people several times that the general public will not be allowed to suffer. Apart from PM Sharif, Defense Minister Asif has also emphasized that this time there will be no need for a large-scale attack. He says that TTP is no longer running its activities from Pakistan’s land. He says that this time the operation will be carried out more in an undercover manner. He has tried to assure the opposition parties and the public that their concerns about the operation are baseless.
KP politicians have different claims
The Pak government claims that TTP’s activities are not being carried out from Pakistani soil but this claim has been denied by KP politicians and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam leader and MNA Maulana Fazlur Rehman. Fazlur Rehman has said that in areas bordering Afghanistan, even the police do not leave the checkpoints after dark. He said that TTP people are forcibly collecting toll from the drivers. He has claimed that TTP is present on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. This group has maintained its presence in most of the districts of KP. The situation is particularly worst in the tribal districts bordering Afghanistan as well as southern districts including Dera Ismail Khan and northern Dir and Swat districts.
The Pakistani government seems to be under pressure from China at the moment. China has publicly reprimanded Pakistan and asked it to rein in terrorist organizations. Pakistan’s new anti-terror operation has also been announced under Chinese pressure. Security analyst Iftikhar Firdaus says that a lot is at stake for Pakistan. China’s statements on security should be seen as a big gesture. Firdaus believes that despite threats of further air strikes on TTP bases in Afghanistan, Pakistan’s backdoor diplomacy with the Taliban regime is going on. Islamabad is using a mix of diplomacy and military pressure to deny TTP a place to operate.
Afrasiab Khattak, a former senator from KP and a member of the leftist National Democratic Movement, says of the new military operation, “People in KP have learned that such operations lead to the expansion of terrorism rather than ending it. The organizations that were earlier talked about eliminating have become stronger. The Pakistan government and the army also realize that these operations can have the opposite effect. Despite this, Islamabad has limited options due to the burden of policy decisions and tense regional relations. In such a situation, Pakistan also finds itself in a difficult situation because questions are raised on it for not controlling the situation around it.