Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday said the government was implementing a comprehensive and effective strategy to “completely eliminate” the menace posed by the proscribed Fitna-al-Hindustan, Fitna-al-Khawarij and other terrorist outfits to the country.

Pakistan has seen a surge in terrorism since the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended its ceasefire deal with the government in November 2022, vowing to increase attacks.

In response, the government labelled the group as Fitna-al-Khawarij and directed use of the term khariji for attackers. It later designated Balochistan-based groups as Fitna-al-Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said the premier chaired a meeting of the Steering Committee on Counter-Terrorism and Establishment of the State Writ (Harden the State) today at the PM House. The meeting was attended by Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, National Security Adviser Lieutenant General Muhammad Asim Malik, PM aide Rana Sanallah, the four provincial chief secretaries and police chief, ministers and officials.

“Pakistan is working on a comprehensive, effective and workable strategy to completely eliminate Fitna al Hindustan, Fitna al Khawarij and other such anti-social elements,” the statement quoted PM Shehbaz as saying.

He said the state was determined to eradicate and uproot the scourge of terrorism, adding that even the world recognised Pakistan’s successful operations against terrorists.

The prime minister said the state had adopted a “multi-pronged strategy” in the war against terrorism and made “full and effective use” of important elements such as ground operations, legislation, meaningful public communication and discouraging extremist thinking.

The prime minister directed the committee to ensure effective coordination between the federal and provincial governments against terrorism and to strictly implement the recommendations of the committee in this regard.

Lauding the role of security personnel and law enforcement agencies, he said the provincial governments, Intelligence Bureau, Ministry of Interior and Counter-Terrorism Department had taken “very effective steps” in the war against terrorism.

“With the joint actions and cooperation of all the relevant institutions, effective actions were taken against smuggling, which made it possible to prevent it,” he said, adding that preventing the issue had a positive impact on the economy.

The prime minister said that only a peaceful and strong state structure free from terrorism could restore the confidence of investors at the international level, adding that the government had brought substantial changes, such as the digitisation of all systems and improvement in the tax system, for this end.

Pointing to the performance of the Pakistan Stock Exchange, he said the record increase in its index and the improvement in the country’s global ratings indicated the economy’s stability and would restore the confidence of foreign investors.

PM Shehbaz also said that the implementation of the repatriation programme for Afghans residing illegally in the country was also continuing effectively in accordance with international laws.

Field Marshal Munir had, similarly, a day ago reaffirmed the military’s resolve to eradicate the menace of terrorism from the country, underscoring the nation’s preparedness to respond decisively to any external or internal threats.

According to a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations, the army chief was speaking to a group of stakeholders at the 16th National Workshop in Balochistan.

“[The] COAS resolutely reaffirmed Pakistan Army’s unwavering commitment to uproot the menace of terrorism and [the] inevitability of socio-economic uplift of Balochistan for national cohesion and integration,” the statement had said.