PAKISTANI authorities have been informing the international community that the banned terrorist organization Tehreek-e-Taliban-Pakistan (TTP) has achieved resurgence, with the tacit aid of the Interim Afghan Government. This resurgence has led to a sharp increase in terrorist attacks in Pakistan due to the Afghan Taliban’s unwillingness to take strict measures against TTP activities in Afghanistan. TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud is solely responsible for these terrorist incidents in Pakistan. The recent report from the UNSC Analytical Support to Sanctions Monitoring Team on Al-Qaeda and ISIS corroborates Pakistan’s security institutions’ findings.
According to UN research, the Afghan Taliban is providing financial assistance to TTP, including payments of $50,500 to Noor Wali Mehsud. Mehsud’s freedom under the Interim Afghan government has empowered him to revive TTP’s violent activities in Pakistan, with full collaboration from Al-Qaeda. Mehsud was blacklisted by the UN in 2020 under UNSC Resolution 1967 for collaborating with Al-Qaeda and ISIS, making it an international obligation for the Afghan government to cooperate with Pakistan for his arrest. Additionally, the US designated him a global terrorist in 2019 for TTP’s attacks against its interests. Therefore, the international community should assist Pakistan in persuading the Afghan government to refrain from providing safe havens to TTP militants in Afghanistan.
The UN research findings reveal that Afghan Taliban members see it as a religious duty to support TTP attacks. They’ve supplied TTP with a large cache of leftover American weaponry and manpower for violence. TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud reaffirmed his allegiance to Afghan Taliban’s supreme commander, Mullah Haibatullah, in August 2021, aligning himself with their leadership for prestige. The Afghan Taliban’s success in forming a government in Kabul has rejuvenated militants, with all terrorist groups idolizing them. Mehsud exploits this, motivating terrorists for increased violence in Pakistan. As a veteran Afghan Jihadi and urban terrorism expert, his leadership style has revitalized TTP into a potent terrorist force. His theological expertise gives him decisive leverage over TTP cadre, uniting disgruntled militants and halting infighting.
According to a UN report, Noor Wali Mehsud, leader of the TTP, is adapting the group to new circumstances and collaborating closely with Al-Qaeda and ISIS in Afghanistan. Al-Qaeda has established 8 camps in Afghanistan, including one in Kunar specifically training suicide bombers for the TTP. They’ve also supplied vehicles to the TTP for the safety of their leaders, with Hakeem Al-Masri of Al-Qaeda facilitating support for terrorist activities in Pakistan. Since the Afghan Taliban assumed power in Kabul in August 2021, there has been a 60% increase in terrorist attacks and a 500% rise in suicide bombings in Pakistan, resulting in around 2200 casualties. Noor Wali’s expertise and control over TTP groups contribute significantly to Pakistan’s current terrorist challenges. As an urban terrorism expert, his ambitions could pose a threat beyond Pakistan’s borders. Neutralizing him would offer relief to Pakistanis and eliminate a potential threat to global peace.
The UNSC report also confirms that the TTP employs different group names in attacks for plausible deniability. Recent major attacks in Pakistan’s DI Khan district have been claimed by TTP, TJP, Ansar-ul-Islam and ISKP, showcasing a complex militant ecosystem operating across borders. These attacks, orchestrated from specific areas in Afghanistan, suggest coordination among these groups. Investigators are puzzled by the emergence of new groups like TJP and Ansar-ul-Islam, with expertise in sophisticated suicide attacks and access to sensitive installations in Pakistan. They attribute these attacks to TTP, which uses various names to mislead authorities and avoid backlash. TTP, comprising over 30 factions with tribal and ideological differences, can easily evade responsibility for specific attacks to mitigate repercussions.
These terrorist sub-groupings are the machinations of the 4th chief of TTP, Noor Wali Mehsud, an articulate propagandist. In the quest of power mongering, he is disguising his terrorist outfit and he is embracing segments of Al-Qaeda and ISIS in the wake of new ground realities emerging after US departure from Afghanistan. Unfortunately, Afghan Taliban has become his abettor in this regard. He has a perfect profile of an international terrorist, therefore, UNSC black listed him and US designated him as a global terrorist. Now, he has got a conducive environment to promote his terrorist agenda in Afghanistan, as a recent UN report has also corroborated that Al-Qaeda, ISKP and TTP terrorist training camps are thriving in Afghanistan.
Pakistan faces serious terrorist threats from TTP’s safe heavens in Afghanistan, as militants have perpetrated 29 deadly suicide attacks in 2023. It has formally informed UNSC that anti-Pakistan terrorists have freedom of action in Afghanistan and UN should probe how TTP have got modern arms to become more lethal in attacks. It expect from international community to make interim Afghan government accountable for violation of Doha Agreement by protecting global terrorists like Noor Wali Mehsud. In this regard, Pakistan could choose to act against TTP in Afghanistan and it would need international support for such action in the greater interest of peace.
—The writer holds an M.Phil in IR from QAU and is a regular contributor specializing in violent extremism and militancy issues.
views expressed are writer’s own.
