ISLAMABAD: The country continues to experience increased terrorist attacks as a total of 59 terrorist attacks occurred across the country in August 2024 compared to 38 such attacks in the previous month.

These incidents included 29 attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 28 in Balochistan and two in Punjab, killing 84 people and 166 others injured, according to the digital database of security incidents managed by the Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), an Islamabad-based think-tank.

Balochistan experienced 28 terrorist incidents during August 2024, which resulted in 57 deaths and injuries to another 84 people. Most of these terrorism-related casualties in the province resulted from the banned BLA-orchestrated attacks on August 26 in over seven districts of the province targeting security forces, non-Baloch people (mainly Punjabis) and national infrastructure.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 29 terrorist attacks took place, claiming 25 lives and wounding 80 others. The banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group, Lashkar-i-Islam, Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) and a few local Taliban groups reportedly carried out these attacks.

KP experienced 29 attacks, Balochistan 28 and Punjab 2, killing 84 people and injuring 166 others

Meanwhile, two reported attacks from Punjab injured two civilians; two of the attackers were also killed. Security forces and the counterterrorism departments (CTDs) of the police conducted 12 anti-militant operations in the country in August compared to 11 in the previous month.

In these operations, 88 militants were killed and 15 army soldiers and three policemen martyrdom. Eight out of the 12 reported operations took place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while four others took place in Balochistan.

Of the total 28 attacks recorded in Balochistan in August this year, 26 were carried out by the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), including the group’s extensive terrorist onslaught on August 26.

PIPS in its monthly security report said that the armed group has escalated its destructive activities, executing high-impact attacks and using female suicide bombers.

On August 26, the anniversary of Baloch chieftain Nawab Akbar Bugti’s death, the group launched coordinated attacks across Balochistan.

The report underlines that the involvement of numerous militants and the use of sophisticated weaponry including vehicle-borne explosives, indicate the BLA’s growing capabilities.

The group has adopted new tactics, such as targeting Punjabis on highways by checking identity cards — a development that may further strain relations between the province and the central government, which seems to be one of the banned entity’s objectives.

Positioning itself as a defender of Baloch interests, the BLA exploits grievances like enforced disappearances and resource exploitation.

As the Baloch people lose faith in the political process, the group may gain more support.

To counter this, the government must create political and social spaces for the Baloch people, the report said.

Additionally, there is an urgent need to investigate the BLA’s sources of training, weapons and funding. Pakistan should engage constructively with Afghanistan and Iran to develop a joint counterterrorism and border security strategy, the report advised.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2024