According to the media, the militants who are carrying out attacks inside Pakistan have obtained US lethal weapons left behind in Afghanistan, and that sophisticated weaponry including long-range snipers, thermal cameras, communication equipment, and modern military vehicles had caused great challenges for Pakistani security forces in Erstwhile FATA and Balochistan. The reports suggest that the influx of American weapons has boosted the military capabilities of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Baloch separatist groups and caused an upsurge in violence in Pakistan past two years.
A wave of unrestricted terrorism dangling across Pakistan and the nation tolerates extreme grief over frequent terror incidents against innocent civilians and law enforcement agencies in the Erstwhile FATA, Peshawar, and Malakand divisions along with the border belt regions of Balochistan.
Unfortunately, multiple measures including in placement of the latest border control systems, the construction of border fencing, checkposts, and military forts on the Pak-Afghan border, along with the enhanced border patrols, and screening of visitors coming from Afghanistan failed to overcome the risks of cross border terrorism and terrorists’ movement across Durand Line. Apparently, the slackness of government institutions, corruption, and the lax behavior of security officials helped terrorism regain its roots in its previous hideouts in the country.
Unfortunately, this time the size and gravity of the risk of terrorism are multitudinous than in the past because banned outfits enjoy sanctuaries in neighboring Afghanistan and have passive support from the host government in that country. Meanwhile, the traders of death and destruction are well equipped with the latest arsenals left behind by the United States military during the run from the country. According to the Pentagon report, the US military left behind modern weapons worth $ 7.2 billion including aircraft, guns, armored cars, communication and specialized equipment such as Night Vision Googles (NVGs), snipers’ guns, communication gears, and biometric devices that were grabbed by the ruling Taliban in mid-2021. The reports suggest that a significant amount of those modern weapons and military equipment fell into the hands of war lards, black market, and Pakistani banned outs including TTP, Balochistan Liberation Army, and others, and currently those weapons are virtually being used against the state of Pakistan.
The current situation presents a grave threat to the writ of the law and poses severe risks for Pakistani security troops deployed in the regions adjoining the Afghan border. Surprisingly, the Pakistani military did not share its official perspective on the reports published in local and international media regarding the use of American arms by the banned outfits against the LEAs. Whereas, KP former Police Chief, Moazzam Jah Ansari has told the media last year that the militants picked up sophisticated weapons left behind by the Americans and waged war against the KP Police. As said, terrorist cells successfully used the latest American weapons such as NVGs and sniper guns against Police and inflicted severe losses to their adversary in the past.
Historically, TTP’s attacks against the state of Pakistan have increased significantly after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, because both groups have identical ideologies and pursuing similar manifestos in adjoining nations. Pakistan has persistently raised the issue of TTP safe havens in Afghanistan with Afghan interim authorities who vehemently showed the cold shoulder and refused to cooperate with Pakistan in this regard. Although, the situation is dire and ground realities made it more consequential for Pakistan because of wrong priorities and mishandling of the issue by the PTI government in past years. Pakistan could not tackle this issue alone because of its multidimensional and transnational nature thus Islamabad must engage the global community including the UN, the United States, Iran, and other regional countries including China to build pressure on Kabul to resist its support for terrorism along with preparing for a final and decisive campaign to eliminate the evil from its soil once and for all. So, peace and prosperity rule in the country.
