THIS is with reference to the report ‘Terror attack at cadet college foiled, students, staff rescued’ (Nov 12). The foiled attack on Cadet College Wanna was another attempt by the terrorists to target the innocent youth of Khyber Pakhtun-khwa (KP) while they were busy in an academic setting. We must be grateful to the Almighty that the terrorists miserably failed in their nefarious designs owing to the timely move of our valiant forces who quickly neutralised the terrorists before they could harm the cadets, teachers or the members of the administrative staff. It was a replica of the attack that was carried out by terrorists belonging to the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) at the Army Public School (APS) in the KP capital of Peshawar back in 2014, inflicting heavy casualties by killing young students and teachers before being eliminated. As a result, Pakistan Army had carried out famous Zarb-i-Azb operation in North Waziristan, during which it was able to destroy terrorists’ hideouts and their sleeper cells.

However, some wise man having a soft corner for these terrorists decided to allow about 40,000 of them to resettle in KP. Since then, the province has been facing terrorist activities. Now again, voices are being raised in KP to indulge in negotiations with these very forces instead of crushing them with military action.

The fact of the matter is that in addition to condemning the heinous acts of violence, intolerance and terrorism in the country, we should increase state-level efforts to dilute the threat itself. Merely blaming the foreign agencies is never really going to be enough. We should move logically ahead.

Malik ul Quddoos
Karachi

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2025