CORPS Commanders at their monthly meeting chaired by Chief of Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir on Wednesday resolved to fight against terrorists without any distinction and eliminate the menace as per the aspirations of the people of Pakistan.
The ISPR statement with regards to the meeting did not specifically mention if some new kinetic operation has been approved, but its tone and almost single focus on the terrorism threat put across the message that counter-terrorism would be the new leadership’s top priority.
Given the recent surge in acts of terrorism, especially in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan as well as the botched suicide bombing attempt in the federal capital, a full-fledged operation against these terrorists on the pattern of Zarb-e-Azb and Raddul Fassad has become all the more imperative as the hard earned peace for which our security personnel and people rendered immense sacrifices cannot be allowed to be sabotaged under any circumstances.
These monsters deserve no mercy whatsoever and the operation should be relentless that eliminates the menace once and for all.
This is really significant to secure the future of the country. Peace and stability is pivotal to attract foreign investment and ensure a positive economic trajectory.
While the most significant threat is coming from TTP, at the same time insurgents in Balochistan have also stepped up their attacks. They have, moreover, formed a nexus with TTP, making the problem even more complex.
This nexus is being seen as one of the reasons why the TTP has been able to stage so many attacks in Balochistan.
This nexus needs to be broken through better intelligence coordination as well as addressing the longstanding grievances of Baloch people.
As we have been suggesting in these columns, there is a need for a grand dialogue on Balochistan to address its problems.
Simultaneously, our authorities need to strongly raise the sordid activities of TTP against Pakistan with the Afghan Government.
Border security needs to be further strengthened and if the Afghan authorities fail to check TTP’s terror activities, we should not hesitate to hit their hideouts within Afghanistan.
Like anybody else, we have the right to defend ourselves against the terror threat emanating from Afghanistan.
