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Terrorist attacks decrease in Pakistan
Militant attacks fell by 32% over the past year, a new report says.
By Zia Ur Rehman
2015-02-02
KARACHI – Pakistan's security situation is heading in a positive direction, according to a recent report published by the Pak Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS).
In a comparison of 2014 and 2013, suicide bombings, terrorist attacks and fatalities fell 43%, 32% and 31% respectively, the report revealed. However, attacks increased in Islamabad and Punjab Province. Punjab had 41, while Islamabad had 14.
Military shatters militant networks
Analysts are contributing much of the success to counter-terrorism operationsZarb-e-Azb and Khyber 1.
The military's launching of Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan in June has wrecked the networks of several militant groups including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Haqqani Network, al-Qaeda and Punjabi Taliban, officials say. They followed it up in October by launching Khyber 1 in the tribal agency of the same name. It reportedly did the same to Lashkar-e-Islam and other militant groups.
Security forces carried out 130 air strikes against the Taliban in 23 districts during 2014, killing 1,917 insurgents. Most of the strikes took place in North Waziristan and Khyber agencies.
Reports coming from the tribal areas show that Pakistani security forces have dismantled the command and control of Taliban groups in the area, Asmat Khan Wazir, an Islamabad-based researcher, told Central Asia Online.
"In the beginning, North Waziristan's tribesmen were doubtful about Operation Zarb-e-Azb," Wazir said. "But now results of the operation have convinced them that it will help in bringing peace and getting rid of militants from the region."
PIPS Director Muhammad Amir Rana also hailed the military for its success, saying that the operation destroyed militants' hideouts and hindered their ability to carry out attacks.
He attributed the rise in terrorist acts in Punjab and Islamabad to the operations, saying that the military was forcing militants out of their usual areas in the tribal belt. Pakistan gives no sign of planning to end its offensive any time soon. Its air force fighter jets January 25 killed 35 suspected militants in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan.
Success in Karachi
Taking full advantage of the on-going military operation in tribal areas, law enforcement agencies intensified their crackdown on the TTP in Karachi. Attacks in Karachi fell 40% in 2014 compared to 2013, the PIPS report said.
Karachi police spokesman Atiq Shaikh attributed the decrease in attacks to the on-going targeted operation that started in September 2013. Since that operation began, police in Karachi have killed more than 700 terrorists, most of whom belonged to the TTP, Shaikh told Central Asia Online.
In December, police killed a number of the TTP militants, including their operational commander, Abid Mehsud (alias Muchar).
"The killing of Muchar and his colleagues is a big achievement," Arshad Mohmand, a Karachi-based Pashtun tribal elder, said, adding that Muchar was involved in assassinating a number of Pashtun elders, civil society activists and police officers in Karachi.
Militant attacks fell by 32% over the past year, a new report says.
By Zia Ur Rehman
2015-02-02
KARACHI – Pakistan's security situation is heading in a positive direction, according to a recent report published by the Pak Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS).
Karachi civil society activists protest against militancy and terrorism January 15. Successful military operations in different parts of the country have reduced terrorist attacks, according to a new report. [Zia Ur Rehman]
- Steep decline seen in sectarian violence in 2014
- Operation Zarb-e-Azb cripples TTP capabilities
- Pakistani forces killed 3,182 terrorists in 2014
In a comparison of 2014 and 2013, suicide bombings, terrorist attacks and fatalities fell 43%, 32% and 31% respectively, the report revealed. However, attacks increased in Islamabad and Punjab Province. Punjab had 41, while Islamabad had 14.
Military shatters militant networks
Analysts are contributing much of the success to counter-terrorism operationsZarb-e-Azb and Khyber 1.
The military's launching of Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan in June has wrecked the networks of several militant groups including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Haqqani Network, al-Qaeda and Punjabi Taliban, officials say. They followed it up in October by launching Khyber 1 in the tribal agency of the same name. It reportedly did the same to Lashkar-e-Islam and other militant groups.
Security forces carried out 130 air strikes against the Taliban in 23 districts during 2014, killing 1,917 insurgents. Most of the strikes took place in North Waziristan and Khyber agencies.
Reports coming from the tribal areas show that Pakistani security forces have dismantled the command and control of Taliban groups in the area, Asmat Khan Wazir, an Islamabad-based researcher, told Central Asia Online.
"In the beginning, North Waziristan's tribesmen were doubtful about Operation Zarb-e-Azb," Wazir said. "But now results of the operation have convinced them that it will help in bringing peace and getting rid of militants from the region."
PIPS Director Muhammad Amir Rana also hailed the military for its success, saying that the operation destroyed militants' hideouts and hindered their ability to carry out attacks.
He attributed the rise in terrorist acts in Punjab and Islamabad to the operations, saying that the military was forcing militants out of their usual areas in the tribal belt. Pakistan gives no sign of planning to end its offensive any time soon. Its air force fighter jets January 25 killed 35 suspected militants in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan.
Success in Karachi
Taking full advantage of the on-going military operation in tribal areas, law enforcement agencies intensified their crackdown on the TTP in Karachi. Attacks in Karachi fell 40% in 2014 compared to 2013, the PIPS report said.
Karachi police spokesman Atiq Shaikh attributed the decrease in attacks to the on-going targeted operation that started in September 2013. Since that operation began, police in Karachi have killed more than 700 terrorists, most of whom belonged to the TTP, Shaikh told Central Asia Online.
In December, police killed a number of the TTP militants, including their operational commander, Abid Mehsud (alias Muchar).
"The killing of Muchar and his colleagues is a big achievement," Arshad Mohmand, a Karachi-based Pashtun tribal elder, said, adding that Muchar was involved in assassinating a number of Pashtun elders, civil society activists and police officers in Karachi.
