EVERY few days, residents of Karachi are reminded in particularly disquieting ways that peace continues to elude this metropolis.
On Tuesday afternoon, two army soldiers in a military vehicle were ambushed in Saddar, one of the busiest districts in the city, by gunmen on a motorbike who made their escape through the narrow streets in the vicinity.
One of the victims died shortly after, while the other succumbed during treatment.
The incident bore striking similarities to an attack in December last year that took place on M.A. Jinnah Road, one of Karachi’s busiest arteries, also in Saddar, which claimed the lives of two military police personnel when their vehicle got stuck in traffic.
When army men in uniform are singled out in this manner, it sends a sinister message to the rest of society: no one, anywhere, is safe.
Despite the nearly three-year long Rangers-led operation to restore law and order in Karachi, criminal elements are still moving about freely, waiting for a chance to strike wherever they can. And by undertaking these comparatively low-risk, hit-and-run operations, they succeed in pushing the state on to the back foot and belie its claims of being in control of the situation.
According to statistics announced recently, terrorism is down by 80pc and targeted killings by 50pc as a result of the operation. However, targeted killings are showing an uptick; some of the more prominent instances among them include the murder of Amjad Sabri in late June, and that of two members of the Ahmadi community in the weeks preceding.
The latest incident illustrates the challenges of policing a complex, urban labyrinth like Karachi where on-ground intelligence is a vital component of the fight against splinter groups of various shades.
Only an able, truly independent and well-equipped police force, with its organic structure that has links deep within local communities, can ferret out such intelligence.
Conversely, the Rangers are by the very nature of their organisational framework at a remove from grass-roots dynamics, contained within their pickets, and they act on the basis of centralised intelligence.
While they may be effective in controlling crime for limited periods, they are not a long-term solution.
To improve the law-and-order situation, a number of proposals have been made to empower the police, including the recruitment of additional personnel and enhanced training. Included on the list should also be a time-specific exit for the Rangers.
Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2016