TWO Chinese nationals were killed and one sustained injuries in a horrific suicide attack near Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport on October 6. At least seventeen others were seriously injured. Approximately 80 kg of high explosives were used in the blast, which set several vehicles ablaze. This incident is part of a string of violence against Chinese nationals in recent years. The Majeed Brigade, a suicide wing of the terrorist group BLA, is involved in the Karachi attack. The attacker, Shah Fahad Baloch, from the Noshki district, was a BBA student at Lasbela University in Balochistan. This incident follows a spate of terror attacks earlier this year aimed at disrupting Pakistan’s close ties with China. The tragic incident happened just days before Pakistan is set to host SCO. To sabotage SC, more terrorist attacks on Chinese are suspected. After Karachi incident, 20 poor coal miners have been killed by the terrorists in Duki near Quetta. This terrorist attack is another message for the stakeholders. Pakistan is a strategic ally of China and a key link in BRI initiative. CPEC has faced mounting security challenges, as Pakistan grapples with a surge in violence from multiple militant and terrorist groups in recent years. The groups include Majeed Brigade, Hafiz Gul Bahadur group, BLA, BLF, TTP and ETIM.
The groups have consensus on targeting Chinese citizens in Pakistan. Terrorist organizations want Chinese nationals to pack up and leave the country without delay. They believe that if the Chinese continue working on CPEC, Pakistan will gain stability. These terrorist groups, being patronized by India and America, are opposed to Pakistan. The groups understand that once China successfully establishes industries based on modern technology, it will be very difficult for them to control the pace of development in Pakistan and China. India and America believe that a strong and stable Pakistan is not in their interests. Through terrorist attacks, India and America can halt the momentum of development in Pakistan and China. The groups are operating as sponsored proxies of India and America. Afghan Taliban are facilitating both India and America in broad-based terrorism in Pakistan. China has invested tens of billions of dollars in CPEC, a flagship BRI project launched in 2015 that links China’s western Xinjiang province to Pakistan’s Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea with a network of roads, railways, pipelines and power plants. The anti-China sentiment is strong among groups in Balochistan. Majeed Brigade of BLA, responsible for recent Karachi attack, is the most prominent of several terrorist groups in Balochistan.
Pakistan and China will have to establish Joint Security Company to crush groups operating against Chinese in the country. Joint intelligence sharing will make it possible. Pakistani police is not well equipped and properly trained. Pakistan and China will have to equip and train police on international modern standards. Pakistan will have to jointly probe linkages of terrorists in different government departments, police and intelligence agencies. Who leeks exclusive information of movement of the Chinese to the terrorist groups? It seems that some strong network is secretly operating among terrorists and insiders in the government. This network will have to be found out. Capability of police will have to be enhanced. To effectively eliminate terrorists, China will need to provide sophisticated weapons and technology to Pakistan. The movement of Chinese engineers and workers should be restricted to their projects. They should be provided with residence and every facility for living at the secured sites of the projects to prevent terrorists from reaching them.
Chinese personnel should be given bomb-proof vehicles for travel and helicopter services for commuting to and from airports. Additionally, they should opt for online meetings to avoid unnecessary movement on roads. We cannot control terrorism in the country with conventional weapons and methods. During the 1990s, China successfully crushed the terrorist network of ETIM in its vast Xinjiang province. Pakistan will have to learn a lesson from China and Sri Lanka that have very successfully crushed terrorism in their countries. By all means Pakistan will have to safeguard Chinese personnel working in the country. Foolproof security arrangements can win confidence of foreign investors. Qatar, KSA, UAE, Turkiye, Russia and China are committed for heavy investment in Pakistan. In bleak security conditions it will be difficult for investors to invest in Pakistan. Government needs to ensure security and wellbeing of Chinese working in Pakistan.
—The writer is author of several books based in Islamabad.
