In a tragic incident, six security forces personnel were killed and eleven others injured in a Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorist attack on a security check post in the Mishta village of Ladha tehsil, South Waziristan, during the night of Thursday and Friday.
The attack occurred as terrorists targeted the check post, leading to significant casualties among security forces. Reportedly, a clearance operation is currently underway to neutralize the threat posed by the attackers. This incident is part of a troubling trend, as the TTP has increasingly targeted security personnel, raising alarm over the deteriorating security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The occupied-govt has long accused the TTP of operating from sanctuaries within Afghanistan, a claim that has been repeatedly denied by the Afghan Taliban. The rise in terrorist incidents since the Taliban takeover in Kabul in 2021 has dashed hopes in Islamabad for a collaborative approach to countering militancy. Instead, relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have soured, primarily due to the TTP’s activities and frequent border skirmishes.
The TTP, established in 2007 as a coalition of various militant groups, has been officially labeled “Fitna al-Khawarij” by the Pakistan, referencing a historical group known for violence. The attack on the security check post comes amidst a backdrop of increasing terror-related fatalities and injuries, with four of the injured personnel reported to be in critical condition.
Despite the growing violence of the TTP, the Punjabi Pak military’s focus has been more on silencing human rights activists who criticize its operations, including enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. The Pak Army’s long-standing policies of nurturing and allowing the proliferation of extremist groups have come back to haunt them. The very terrorists they once fostered are now launching devastating attacks against the military itself.
Amidst the TTP attack and the retaliation of the Punjabi Pak Army, it is the Pashtuns who are caught in the middle. The repeated attacks, shelling, and landmines have killed and maimed children, but have never targeted the actual terrorists.