Pak Taliban plans to 'liberate' Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, establish Sharia rule

Islamabad: In the wake of rising terror activities across Pakistan, the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is planning to throw the Shehbaz Sharif-led government out of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and establish Sharia by waging a terrorist campaign against the military and state, according to a US State Department report. As per the 2021 Country Reports on Terrorism, the terrorist group is using the tribal belt along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border to train and deploy its operatives, Dawn reported. As per the report, TTP receives ideological guidance from al-Qaeda, and some al-Qaeda members use TTP as a “safe haven” in the Pashtun region near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. “This arrangement has given TTP access to both AQ’s global terrorist network and its members’ operational expertise,” it stated. Besides TTP, Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), and the militant Islamic State-Khorasan group (IS-K) are the major terrorist groups that focus on conducting attacks in Pakistan. It further highlighted that Pakistan “experienced significant terrorist activity” during 2021. Aid from US “The United States provides assistance to support trade and economic growth” in Pakistan, the report stated, while mentioning the link between terrorism and lack of economic activities. Assistance from the US to Pakistan includes partnering with US businesses, civil society, and the regions bordering Afghanistan. “This assistance is intended to improve the lives of the Pakistani people and support US objectives… The United States continues to support people-to-people exch­anges to alleviate misunderstandings and complications in the bilateral relationship,” the report said. Back in 2021, the terror groups conducted terrorist attacks against varied targets in Pakistan’s Balochistan and Sindh. In order to attack varied targets, terrorists used a range of tactics, including improvised explosive devices, vehicle borne improvised explosive devices, suicide bombings, and targeted assassinations. ‘Meager Progress’ The US Bureau of Counterterrorism’s ‘Country Reports on Terrorism 2021: Pakistan’ stated that the Shehbaz Sharif-led country has made meager progress in its pledge to dismantle all terrorist organisations without delay or discrimination. Islamabad experienced significant terrorist activity in 2021 – the number of attacks and casualties was higher than 2020. “Pakistan reviewed and revised its 2015 National Action Plan (NAP) to counter terrorism, reducing the NAP from a 20-point plan to 14 key points, but made meager progress on the most difficult aspects – specifically its pledge to dismantle all terrorist organizations without delay or discrimination,” the report read. Back in 2018, Pakistan was designated a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. It was redesignated as a CPC in 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2018, FATF identified Pakistan as a jurisdiction with strategic deficiencies in its AML/CFT system. Pakistan remained on the FATF grey list in 2021. In 2021, members of religious minorities in Pakistan faced significant threats from terrorist groups. On January 3, ISIS-K militants claimed responsibility for the murders of 11 Shia Hazara coalminers in the Kachi district of Balochistan. On April 21, five persons were killed in a VBIED suicide attack in the parking lot of the Serena hotel in Quetta, Balochistan. According to details of the investigation, the attack targeted local and foreign officials. TTP claimed responsibility for the attack, also claiming the targets were police and law enforcement, according to the report. The report has identified IS-K as another group which poses a significant threat to Pakistan and is composed primarily of former TTP members, the Afghan Taliban, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. It is estimated to have between 3,000 and 5,000 fighters and has claimed responsibility for attacks on civilians and government officials in Pakistan. IS-K, elements of Al Qaeda, and terrorist groups targeting Pakistan, like TTP, have continued to use the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region as a safe haven. (With inputs from ANI) Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.