Carnage in Kabul

Published July 25, 2016

KABUL is bleeding again and the mosaic of terror that Afghanistan has to contend with has become yet more complicated. The beleaguered Hazaras in Afghanistan have long been victims of bigotry and violence. But an attack on this scale — more than 80 people have been killed and 200 injured — in the Afghan capital on peaceful Hazara demonstrators demanding economic inclusion suggests a motive to stoke civil unrest and deepen ethnic and sectarian divisions in the country. This just as the Taliban insurgency appears to be struggling with internal divisions and the post-Akhtar Mansour intensity of Taliban attacks has waned. Stability in Afghanistan remains as elusive as ever.

Pakistan, which has witnessed its own share of horrific attacks against the Hazaras in recent years, ought to take the Kabul bombing very seriously for at least two reasons. First, the militant Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attack and, from initial details provided by Afghan officials and presented by IS media, the assertion appears to be credible. Specifically, the claim by Afghan officials that the suicide bombers had been dispatched from Nangarhar province by an IS commander should trouble officials here because that is also the region in which anti-Pakistan TTP militants are alleged to have found sanctuary. Indeed, the militant presence of IS in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region is mostly traced to breakaway factions of the banned TTP. IS elements entwined with TTP in eastern Afghanistan pose a threat to the whole region, and with the Kabul attack they may have proved they are capable of launching distant attacks in well-protected areas. The attack also confirms why Pakistan needs to work with the Afghan government to progressively make the border impenetrable for militants and terrorists on both sides. Neither country will truly be safe until they acknowledge the fundamental and reciprocal responsibility to the other to eradicate terrorism from the region.

In addition, the attack in Kabul should serve as a warning to the security apparatus inside Pakistan that there is no room for complacency in the fight against IS. The latter is both a terror outfit and an inspiration for would-be terrorists seeking motive and looking for direction — this means it can function both like traditional militant groups and also a diffuse threat by undetectable so-called lone wolves. Any justifying and violent rhetoric after the Kabul attack should be closely monitored and swiftly acted against. Hazaras inside Pakistan deserve special protection because of the violent array of threats against them. Moreover, IS intends for its ethnic and sectarian campaign to trigger copycat attacks and deepen societal divisions. The recent successes inside Pakistan against TTP and Al Qaeda remnants should not cause vigilance against other possible emerging threats to drop.

Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2016

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