DG ISPR: Political mafia is out to sabotage Azm-e-Istehkam operation

F.P. Report

RAWALPINDI: Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Monday addressed an important press conference. The ISPR DG started his press conference by saying that the purpose of this communication was to clarify the army’s stance on some important matters, adding that organised propaganda was being amplified by certain quarters who spread false and concocted news against the armed forces in recent times.

He said it had become necessary to speak about these issues from time to time. Briefing the media on the efforts of the security forces against rooting out terrorism, he said the security forces carried out 22,409 intelligence-based operations which resulted in elimination of 31 high-profile terrorists. He said 137 personnel embraced martyrdom during these operations. He said the security forces were conducting 112 operations on a daily basis.

Responding to a question regarding ‘Operation Azm-i-Istehkam’, he said it was unlike previous opeartions. “No one is going to be displaced this time round,” he added. Elaborating on the Operation Azm-i-Istehkam, he said an announcement was made on June 22 last following a meeting headed by the prime minister in which all stakeholders were involved.

He said it was unanimously agreed in the meeting that the National Action Plan (NAP) of 2021 would be implemented in letter and spirit to cleanse Pakistan of terrorism. He further said as many as 16,000 seminaries were registered and 50 percent were not registered yet, adding that no one knew who was running these. He also touched upon the establishment of the anti-terrorism courts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan for uprooting terrorism. The army spokesman also lashed out at the “elements involved in illegal smuggling along the border of Afghanistan.”

As for the May 9 perpetrators, Lt Gen Sharif said people who were responsible for attacking military installations were the ones stoking ‘digital terrorism’. He criticised those who were falsely labelling these ‘digital terrorists’ as heroes, saying “no one knows how this sort of terrorism is being spread.” “Any further leverage to the May 9 perpetrators will foment chaos. It has become necessary for us to take action against this kind of fascism,” he made it clear.

He blamed foreign terrorists and digital terrorists in the same breath. Answering a question about the recent incident in Bannu, he said there were few armed men marching along with demonstrators in Bannu, adding that they were moving towards the Bannu Cantonment to attack security personnel, to which soldiers swiftly responded according to the standard operating procedures (SOP).

Incidents of terrorism have spiked in the past few days, prompting the government to urge Afghanistan to rein in militants. Last month, the government approved the launch of operation “Azm-e-Istehkam” to give a befitting response to terrorists launching attacks in the country. In a brazen attack, eight Pakistan Army personnel embraced martyrdom as security forces effectively thwarted a terrorist attack at the Bannu Cantonment. The forces killed the 10 militants.

As many as 10 terrorists were killed in an attack after they tried to force their way into Bannu Cantonment, the ISPR said about the terrorism act targeting the military in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which has been witnessing a surge in violence. A statement said eight army men were martyred in the terror attack and noted that the swift action taken by security forces helped avoid massive destruction and loss of human lives.

The ISPR described the response given by security forces as valiant action which, it said, was an expression of military’s resolve to fight terrorism. The ISPR also said the Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group, currently operating from Afghanistan, was responsible for the latest attack and had acted in a similar way in the past too – one of the many terror outfits which are now based in the landlocked country with full support from Kabul.