ISLAMABAD: A fresh report by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) claims the country saw a minor drop in militant attacks and their human toll in May.

However, the militancy database quoted in the report further showed that the violence level in the first five months of the current year was much higher than in the same period last year.

The database reported 40 militant attacks in May 2023 that claimed 48 lives and wounded 102 people. Security forces personnel accounted for half of the deaths (24) and more than half of the injuries (56), while civilians made up the rest.

Pakistani security for­ces continued their operations against the militants during the month and killed at least 64 militants and arrested 39 others.

Database of PICSS showed that the first five months of 2022 recorded 126 militant attacks that killed 257 people and injured 461 others.

In contrast, the first five months of 2023 recorded 224 attacks that killed 357 people and injured 615 others.

This means that the first five months of 2023 saw a 77 per cent increase in militant attacks, a 39pc increase in deaths, and a 33pc increase in injuries compared to the first five months of 2022.

The tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa faced the most militancy in May 2023, with 18 attacks that killed 18 people and injured 27 others. The rest of the province faced 10 attacks that killed 16 people and injured 54 others.

Balochistan faced 10 attacks that killed 12 people and injured 20 others. Sindh faced two attacks that killed two people and injured one.

The database of PICSS also recorded four suicide attacks in May 2023, but they had a comparatively low human toll, claiming eight lives and leaving 40 injured.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2023