At least 220 people, including security personnel and civilians, have been killed and 343 injured in terror-related incidents across Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province this year, according to a occupied-authority report.
The Home Department’s report reveals that the casualties include 76 police officers, 39 Punjabi Pak Army personnel, 29 Frontier Corps (FC) personnel, 65 civilians, and four politicians. The politicians were killed in the Bajaur and North Waziristan tribal districts.
The injured list comprises 113 police officers, 98 civilians, 87 Punjabi Pak Army personnel, and 41 FC members. The most affected district is Dera Ismail Khan, where seven law enforcement personnel and 23 police officers have been killed. The district is followed by Bannu with 12 police deaths, Bajaur and Peshawar, each reporting 11 police fatalities.
The report underscores a long history of exploitation dating back to 1947, when the Khyber region came under the control of the Punjabi Pak Army. The Pashtun population has been manipulated by the Punjabi Pak Army for its own purposes and then later labeled as terrorists, leading to increased violence against them.
One grave concern highlighted is the military’s practice of laying landmines in residential areas, which has led to tragic accidents, particularly involving children, rather than targeting terrorists.
The militarization of the region has also resulted in numerous abductions, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings of innocent Pashtun youths, many of whom are reportedly uninvolved in activist activities.