When Mohsin Dawar narrowly escaped an elaborate assassination attempt in which his vehicle was sprayed with more than 60 bullets about a month before the 2024 general elections, he saw no option but to slow down his campaign. He was seeking re-election to a National Assembly seat from his hometown of North Waziristan — a restive tribal district of Pakistan’s Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan and is one of the areas in the country worst affected by Taliban militancy and the war on terror.

On the morning of Jan. 3, Dawar’s corner meetings planned in the village of Tappi, North Waziristan, had to be abruptly cancelled when his vehicle came under attack from around 15 assailants from the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). He survived the attack because the vehicle was armoured, but the attackers — determined to get him — launched another attack as more militants joined in from across Waziristan.

As Dawar was whisked away to safety at a home in the village, his private security and the police guarding his convoy sought help from the Pakistan Army to fight the attackers. But they received no response or assistance. Despite this, they continued to engage the militants and were able to drive them away after 45 minutes of violent clashes involving live ammunition and heavy weapons. 

“It was a miracle I survived that attack,” Dawar told Dissent Today in a phone interview, saying that his supporters, people from his tribe, and the police were on their own against the militants, with no assistance from the military. After this near-death experience, he had to end his participation in campaign events due to security concerns, relying on his party colleagues and supporters to convey his campaign message.

Dawar, who heads the progressive National Democratic Movement (NDM) that he founded in 2021 along with a group of secular Pashtun politicians, has been vocal against the resurgence of Taliban terrorism in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa during his time in the National Assembly from 2018 to 2023. During an in-camera meeting of the parliament’s National Security Committee held in 2022 to discuss the rise in terrorism in the province, Dawar was reportedly the only member to challenge then-Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Faiz Hameed about the military’s decision to negotiate with the Taliban.

Even before he began his 2024 election campaign, he heard threats and warnings that the Taliban wanted to target him. Following the attack in Waziristan, personnel from the security agencies warned him that this time the militants had sent a suicide bomber who was roaming around his chamber in the town of Miranshah, disguised as one of his many guests and waiting to hug him.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has a bloody history of election violence, with candidates and representatives of secular parties being attacked by militants in the lead up to the polls. Like a number of other anti-Taliban candidates in the province, Dawar had to go to the polls amid this wave of fear, but he and his followers remained determined not to end the campaign.

The former lawmaker could not stay in one city for more than three days and would travel from Waziristan to Peshawar to Islamabad and back, just to thwart another potential assassination attempt. “Due to this, there was virtually no election campaign,” Dawar said, adding that his supporters remained on the ground, but it was hard for the party to counter the opponents’ narrative because of his absence from campaign activities.

These threats, however, were not the only hurdle in their way. Just weeks before the elections, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) altered the electoral scheme in Waziristan, moving 56 polling stations from areas that Dawar believed were his strongholds to less accessible locations. The changes were made at the request of the Islamist Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F), one of Dawar’s main opponents, whose candidate would later be declared the winner in this constituency. 

Most of these polling stations were moved to properties owned by or in use by members or leaders of the JUI-F, which Dawar and his supporters feared could be used as leverage against them.

The JUI-F’s request to change these polling stations was initially rejected, but the election officials overseeing the process later accepted the demand abruptly. Dawar says his sources in the civil administration informed him that the relevant officials had to approve the application after being pressured to do so by military officials.

The NDM wrote applications to the district returning officer and the ECP, expressing concerns over this change, but received no response.

Despite this series of setbacks, the newly formed NDM had fielded 17 candidates for national and provincial assembly seats and was eager to navigate its first general election. Dawar said the party had conducted multiple training sessions for its polling agents to thwart rigging attempts. “We considered every scenario [of electoral rigging] and trained our polling agents accordingly.”

But Election Day on Feb. 8 arrived with yet another act of terror: a suicide attack targeting NDM’s three female polling agents in the same village where Dawar had earlier survived an assassination attempt. Although the women were not physically injured, the trauma left them unconscious, forcing them to abandon their duties. 

Dawar later heard reports that the Taliban had taken over some polling stations in the village. “We wrote to the ECP about this attack on our polling agents and the militants taking control of the polling stations, but we did not hear back,” he said. 

As unofficial election results began to emerge, reports surfaced that a Returning Officer (RO) — the main official responsible for consolidating results — was tampering with votes in the constituency and increasing the JUI-F’s count. Dawar went to the RO’s office located in the Miranshah cantonment area and confronted him with information he had received about the tampering. “The RO denied altering the results. But he later disappeared, and we could not find him all day,” Dawar says. The RO’s mysterious disappearance led to unusual delays in the counting process.

Dawar and other candidates stayed the night at the building, waiting to receive an update. On the night of Feb. 9, they were informed that the pending results from the Mir Ali district wouldn’t be received until the next day. Since the counting was delayed until then, candidates were asked to leave the office and return the following morning. At the time they left the RO’s office that night, Dawar was leading by more than 5,000 votes.

But they woke up next morning to a hurriedly issued notification from the ECP for the provincial assembly seat of PK-103, where a candidate who had been trailing by a significant number of votes since the voting day, was declared the winner.

“That’s when we realized they were completely distorting the results,” Dawar says.

Two days before the election, Dawar had issued a video message predicting that election officers may change the final results on Form 45, a crucial document used in Pakistan’s post-electoral process, which discloses the outcomes of the voting procedure at a particular polling place.

“That’s exactly what they later did to us and many other candidates across Pakistan,” he says.

When Dawar and his supporters arrived at the RO’s office in Cantonment area once again that morning, they were stopped at the gate, which was sealed by security forces. 

According to Pakistan’s election laws, candidates and their polling agents are entitled to be present at the location where votes are being counted and gathered. But no candidates were being allowed to enter the premises, in violation of the law.

After being denied entry, Dawar and his supporters began a protest outside the building, demanding access to the RO’s office. “Our concern was that our mandate was being stolen inside,” Dawar said.

As the protesters marched toward the RO’s office, chanting slogans, security forces stationed at the gate suddenly opened fire on them. Dawar was the first to be hit, receiving two bullets in his right leg. Three of his supporters died on the spot from the gunfire, while another succumbed to his injuries at a hospital. 15 other protestors were injured. 

Dawar was rushed to a nearby hospital in Waziristan. As he received treatment for his bullet wounds at the hospital, a candidate from the JUI-F was announced the winner from the constituency. 

Pakistan’s mainstream media conducted marathon transmissions covering the elections, but this incident of election violence targeting a former parliamentarian barely registered in the mainstream media. On the contrary, sections of the media reported it as an attack on the Pakistani military, airing misleading claims from government officials that Dawar’s supporters had attacked security forces and injured policemen.

Miranshah district administration officials had claimed at the time that Dawar’s supporters tried to force their way into the building and injured policemen in the process. However, according to two Waziristan-based reporters Dissent Today spoke to, the local police denied that their personnel were killed or injured in the incident, disputing the official version that held the protesters responsible.

Then-interim Prime Minister Anwaar Kakar repeated these accusations during a media briefing, and most media outlets reported the questionable official version, which cleared the security forces of responsibility for opening fire at the protest.

“I did not expect them to shoot,” Dawar said, adding that he wouldn’t have staged a protest and endangered his supporters’ lives if he had known the security forces would open fire on them.

Three of the men killed in the gunfire were under 30 years of age, while one was in his late 40s.

After initial treatment in Waziristan, Dawar was moved to a hospital in Peshawar for better medical care, where he remained under treatment for four days. During this time, no mainstream politician — including those who were once his allies in the Pakistan Democratic Movement — reached out to him to inquire about his health. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who called him to ask for details about the incident, was the only exception.

A year after this incident, no FIR has been registered for the killing of the four protesters, as authorities rejected Dawar’s application for a case and registered a counter FIR against him and his supporters in response. Their complaint before the election tribunal regarding alleged rigging in the constituency has not been heard either and continues to face delays.

Dawar says he had expected to face hurdles during the election but had not anticipated that the establishment would go to such lengths to keep him away from Parliament. 

His sources among security agencies often tell him that the main reason he is unacceptable to the powers that be is his stance against the Taliban. “Many political forces in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chose to accept the Taliban as a reality after they gained ground in the province,” Dawar says, but adds that his party will never accept the militant group’s presence in the region.

“We are not willing to compromise on any part of our narrative,” he says.

• Additional reporting by Rai Bhittani in North Waziristan.

Ailia Zehra

The writer is a journalist and the Founding Editor of Dissent Today. She covers politics, human rights, and religious extremism. She tweets at @AiliaZehra.

The post A Year After Elections, Ex-Waziristan Parliamentarian Unable to Find Justice for Fallen Comrades appeared first on Dissent Today.

Beginning at the Parachinar Press Club, the march covered a distance of about 15 miles and ended at the Samir Abbas area. Most participants were from the Shia minority community, which has long been a target of sectarian violence in the region.

The protesters called on the authorities to reopen the Thal-Parachinar road, which connects Parachinar to the rest of the country. This road has been closed for about a month, and the blockade has brought daily life and trade in the town to a halt.

Another demand is action against militants targeting the Shia community. On November 5, civilian vehicles were reportedly attacked by these militants, killing two and injuring several others, including women. Further, the protesters have alleged that the Pakistan military has been distributing aid packages only to Sunni-dominated areas in the town, deliberately overlooking Shia areas. The marchers demanded the authorities end this policy of discrimination.

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On June 24, Manmohan Singh, a 35-year-old shop owner, was killed by an unidentified assailant in Peshawar while heading home from work in a rickshaw. This was the third incident of targeted killing of Sikhs in Peshawar this year, following the murder of the 40-year-old shopkeeper, Dyal Singh, in April. 

Dyal is survived by four children. According to his brother, Kaim Singh, during the month of Ramadan, Dyal would sell items at affordable prices at his shop. 

In another terror incident in July, Sardar Amir Chohan Singh narrowly survived an attack on Kohat Road in Peshawar. Singh was on his way to work when he encountered two individuals riding a motorcycle. The attackers had concealed their faces with masks and were carrying weapons with the intention of targeting Singh for a potential assassination. Singh was able to avoid the situation and safely returned home. An FIR was registered into this incident at the Rehman Baba Police Station, but the police have made no arrests so far. Tarlok Singh, the owner of a grocery store, survived a similar attack in June. 

In May 2022, two other shopkeepers, Ranjit Singh and Kuljit Singh, were shot dead at their shops in Bata Tal Chowk in Peshawar. 

Savinder Singh, the owner of a cosmetic shop in Saddar, Peshawar, received a threatening letter in July of this year that contained the message: “Next: “Next target soon. Wait for your turn. InshaAllah and Allahu Akbar”

Gurpal Singh, a Sikh activist and community leader, told Dissent Today that after the killing of Dyal Singh in April, approximately 159 families have left Peshawar for Punjab, with 80 children obtaining leave certificates from various schools in the city. He added that it is the Sikh men working as shopkeepers who are mostly being targeted in Peshawar. “The City of flowers”, he said, has now become “the city of blood”.’ Singh called on Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial to take suo motu notice of such incidents. 

The caretaker Chief Minister Muhammad Azam Khan had announced an amount of PKR 3,00,000 ($980) to the families of Tarlok who was injured in an attack, and compensation of PKR 10,00000 (about $3,267) for the family of the slain Manmohan Singh. However, activist Gurpaal Singh revealed that the cheques were never given to the families, referring to them as ‘dummy cheques.’ The families have written a letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Peshawar regarding the order, but they are still struggling to receive the financial compensation. 

Sikhs leaving Pakistan – a country where they once found safety 

According to Gurpaal Singh, there are approximately 15,000 Sikhs left in Pakistan. Despite their small numbers, the Sikh community holds significant historical and cultural importance in the country.

Due to regional instability, many Sikhs in Afghanistan migrated to Pakistan, India, and other foreign countries in the 1990s. The population decrease in the region was primarily due to various conflicts, such as the Afghan war and civil wars of 1992, resulting in a significant Sikh diaspora, particularly from Kabul and Jalalabad. The population, which was between 200,000 and 500,000 in 1970, had dropped to around 700 in 2020, according to a Sikh businessman.

Prior to the partition of the Indian subcontinent, an estimated 2 million Sikhs lived in Pakistan, mainly in the Punjab region. However, their population has drastically declined to only a few thousand since 1947.

The migration of Afghan Sikhs to Pakistan was due to various reasons, including a lack of security, incidents such as the burning of gurdwaras, suicide bombings, the imposition of jizya tax, and the Taliban’s ban on cremation customs.

Prior to the partition of the Indian subcontinent, an estimated 2 million Sikhs lived in Pakistan, mainly in the Punjab region. However, their population has drastically declined to only a few thousand since 1947. According to Singh, roughly 7,000 Sikhs currently reside in Punjab, with a concentration in Nankana Sahib and Lahore. Additionally, approximately 6,000 Sikhs live in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

‘Militant group behind attacks against minorities’

Meanwhile, a police source told Dissent Today on the condition of anonymity that an investigation into the recent cases of targeted killing of the community was ongoing, which is why details regarding handlers and cells cannot be disclosed. The source indicated that there is ‘one militant group’ responsible for all cases of targeted killings of religious minorities in Peshawar this year.

According to a police source, a total of nine people were targeted, including three Muslim religious leaders, two Sikhs (one of whom survived the attack but was injured), one Shia, and two Christians. The police source further stated that the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISKP), a.k.a. Daesh, has claimed responsibility for the targeted attacks. According to another police source, a 30-bore weapon was used in the recent killings, and there is a resemblance among weapons used in different attacks.

When asked about the upsurge in targeted killings in Peshawar, the police source attributed it to the influx of people migrating from Afghanistan to Pakistan due to the policies of the Afghan Taliban who have been ruling the country since 2021. In response to these attacks, the police claimed to have provided security to minority communities, installing security checkpoints at undisclosed hotspots after the killing of Manmohan Singh.

Radesh Singh Tony, a human rights activist, and Chairman of the Minority Rights Forum, stated that the Sikh community was being targeted not just in Peshawar but other parts of the country as well. Tony stated that these targeted killings began in 2013, starting with extortion and kidnapping incidents.

He said the first person to be killed in such targeted attacks was Bhagwan Singh in 2013 in Charsadda. In 2016, Dr. Soran Singh, the provincial minister for minority affairs, was also killed, he added. 

Criticizing the government, Tony, who once contested an election from Peshawar’s PK-75 constituency, questioned why they failed to trace the threatening calls and nab the culprits before the killings. According to the activist, the Sikh community is an easy target because they are recognizable due to their turbans and beards. 

Hate speech through loudspeakers 

Tony also stated that clerics in mosques practice hate speeches against minorities through loudspeakers, which is a reason for this rise in targeted killing of the Sikh community in the city.

Tony proposed that community policing should be introduced in bazaars by the government or police to easily identify terrorists, as the province lacks a dependable CCTV footage system. Despite victims reporting extortion calls, the police have not responded. 

“The biggest evidence of failure is that no one has ever been brought to justice for these crimes against the community,” he said.

However, a police source claimed that Police Liaison Committees already function as community policing. Another police source, addressing the absence of adequate CCTV cameras in bazaars, stated that they are working on the matter from multiple angles. The police also revealed that they have deployed a special force group for this purpose.

Shaeran Rufus

The writer is a Karachi-based journalist passionate about human rights, social issues, and minority advocacy. She tweets at @ShaeranRufus

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On Monday morning, they were presented before the anti-terrorism court after being booked on charges of terrorism. Former MNA Ali Wazir’s face was covered with a cloth as he appeared before the court.

In his statement to the court, Wazir said that he did not say anything objectionable during his speech at the rally in Islamabad. “We simply wanted to get our voices heard in Islamabad,” he added.

Imaan Mazari’s legal team told the court that they were not allowed to hold a meeting with her and sought the court’s permission to meet her. The anti-terrorism court then announced its verdict, remanding Ali Wazir and Imaan Mazari to the police for three days.

Both individuals have been booked after their participation in the PTM rally against enforced disappearances and terrorism held outside the Supreme Court on Friday. Ahead of the rally, workers and supporters of PTM were arrested on their way to Islamabad. The administration had also imposed Section 144 in the capital on the day of the rally.

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In June, a sit-in organized  by the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) in former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) which continued for almost a month, was called off after the government assured that PTM workers, allegedly abducted by security forces, would be released within a week. But the promise remains unfulfilled, and the fate of the victims hangs in the balance. Those at the forefront of this fight against enforced disappearances are met with state’s highhandedness. The arrest of Pashtun MNA Ali Wazir and PTM worker Alamzeb Mehsud further highlights the challenges faced by those advocating for change. The voice of poet Gilamaan Wazir, an active PTM member, was silenced when he was abruptly abducted near Peshawar Airport, and reasons for his abduction remain undisclosed.

Despite Pakistan’s shift from military rule to democratic governance since 2008, the harrowing crime of enforced disappearances continues to plague its citizens. Numerous voices, including political activists, students, parliamentarians, human rights defenders, journalists, and lawyers, have passionately raised concerns about this issue. The collective outcry against this grave violation resonates across the country. The halls of High Courts, the chambers of the Supreme Court, and the corridors of the parliament have echoed with the urgency to address this issue, yet, regrettably, the wheels of change seem hesitant to turn. The question that lingers, haunting the conscience of a nation, is why this dark chapter endures despite the clamor for change and the promise of democratic governance.

In June, a sit-in organized  by the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) in former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) which continued for almost a month, was called off after the government assured that PTM workers, allegedly abducted by security forces, would be released within a week. But the promise remains unfulfilled.

While the issue of enforced disappearances affects the entire nation, it is essential to recognize the concentration of cases in this particular region. The KP region has been a focal point of concern, as it has experienced a discernible surge in instances of enforced disappearances. This trend has prompted us to delve deeper into the underlying factors contributing to this unsettling phenomenon.

Since the inception of Pakistan in 1947, FATA remains an area of significant importance. To understand the current situation in these regions, it is crucial to trace back the historical roots that have shaped their governance landscape.

The legacy of European colonialism, with its inherent racial classification of people and territories, established a hegemonic system that enabled the exploitation of nations, marginalized classes, and communities. This hegemony, deeply rooted in the region, has had a lasting impact on the governance structures of KP and Ex-FATA.

The pivotal policy that set the stage for the current state of affairs can be traced back to Lord Curzon’s frontier policy, formulated during the British Raj. Under this policy, the territory previously managed by the Punjab region was deemed to be more effectively governed by the direct control of the government of India. Consequently, the British introduced the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) in 1901.

While the FCR laws were lifted from KP in 1956 and from Balochistan in 1973, they remained in effect in FATA until 2018. These regulations, stemming from the colonial era, profoundly impacted the governance of the region. Under the FCR, governance was entrusted to appointed political agents who held substantial powers and authority over the local population.

One of the most egregious aspects of the FCR was the denial of basic rights to individuals. They were not allowed to present evidence or have legal representation in court, rendering them vulnerable to arbitrary decisions. Furthermore, the absence of the right to appeal a conviction in court gave rise to a culture of impunity. The FCR also authorized collective punishment, further violating the fundamental rights and dignity of the people. Additionally, property confiscation added to the oppressive measures imposed upon the population.

After years of struggle and grievance against the heinous colonial-era system, some significant development took place when the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government, in August 2011, made amendments to the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR). However, a peculiar timeline emerges when we examine the events leading up to this amendment. Just one month prior, in June 2011, the Action in Aid of Civil Power Regulation 2011(AACPR) was implemented, which had been introduced in 2008. It is noteworthy that this regulation was applicable not only in FATA but also in PATA.

The introduction of the AACPR 2011 has been attributed to the military, which has faced criticism for opposing the amendments to the FCR. Amnesty International raised concerns, stating: “the Pakistan army was strongly opposed to these FATA reforms, and they were only approved by the president in August after the armed forces had been given sweeping powers and protections under the AACPR in June of the same year.” These gave military sweeping powers and replaced FCR, despite the elected representatives in the Parliament not being able to play a meaningful role in the affairs of FATA. Unfortunately it does not end here.

Despite the historic and long-awaited amendment passed by the National Assembly in 2018, merging FATA into KP and negating the effects of the FCR, the region still finds itself in the shadows. This amendment aimed to align ex-FATA with the laws and regulations passed by the provincial assembly of KP, operating under the constitution of Pakistan.

While this step was hailed as a positive development, the ground reality has proven to be different. Many common people remain unaware of the changes and the implications they bring. In addition, the matter concerning the regulation of the Action in Aid of Civil Power, which had significant implications for governance and rights, has yet to be adequately debated and addressed.

It did not take long for further complications to arise. The KP Actions (in aid of civil power) Ordinance, 2019, was issued by the provincial governor on August 5. The anticipated positive changes have taken an unexpected turn, as the regulation implemented in 2011, originally applicable only to FATA, has been extended almost identically to encompass the entire Khyber Pashtunkhwa (KP) region. Surprisingly, this ordinance was passed without the knowledge or involvement of the KP assembly.

The present ordinance diverges from the Qanun-i-Shahadat (Evidence Act) by deeming statements from armed forces members as sufficient evidence for convicting individuals, and by permitting the admission of all evidence collected by the internment authority without adhering to standard rules of scrutiny. This ordinance imposes harsh penalties, such as the death penalty, life imprisonment, and fines, for various offenses. Importantly, it denies abducted individuals or those in military custody the legal rights of appeal, access to legal representation, and the right to be heard before a court.

In terms of terminology, the ordinance defines “action in aid of civil power” as measures that involve the mobilization of armed forces to provide support to civil authorities. These measures continue until a written order for withdrawal is issued. The “defined area” refers to the specific region designated by the provincial government where armed forces are requisitioned to secure the territory and maintain peace.

Under this ordinance, provincial governments or their authorized representatives are granted the power to act as the interning authority. This authority allows them to detain individuals, even beyond the defined area. This controversial ordinance was initially declared unconstitutional by the Peshawar High Court but the decision was later suspended by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court formed a three-member bench to hear the petitions filed by the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the federal government in relation to the Peshawar High Court’s order. The Supreme Court suspended the High Court’s order until November 15 and announced that a larger bench would be constituted to examine the matter’s constitutionality.

Despite arguments presented in the Supreme Court, the Peshawar High Court declared the ordinance illegal, the controversial ordinance granting power to the military remains in effect. This situation highlights the existence of different laws within the same state, perpetuating the marginalization and continued colonization of these areas. It contradicts the establishment’s own claims that the regions have been cleared and safe for the residents.

Furthermore, the state’s response to peaceful protestors and human rights activists, particularly those associated with the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement advocating for their fundamental rights, has been harsh. The people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) continue to live in a state of fear. Unfortunately the people of KP find themselves lost in a series of transitions, encompassing the eras of British colonization, dictatorial rule, and democratic shifts. From the oppressive FCR and Shariat systems to subsequent regulations and ordinances, the recent developments have further complicated the situation. In simple words, contrary to expectations, it was not the merger of FATA into KP, but rather KP that was merged into FATA.

Ikram Ullah Maseed

The post Lost in Transition: Enforced Disappearances and the Never-Ending Plight of Ex-FATA appeared first on Dissent Today.

The rally was organised by the Swat Olasi Pasoon (Swat Public Uprising) and was attended by people from across the province.

Member National Assembly Ali Wazir, Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, and Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement chief Manzoor Ahmad Pashteen were among the speakers.

The leaders condemned the recent terror attacks across the province, including a blast in an office of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in the Kabal area that claimed 17 lives and killing of Shia teachers in an attack at a school in the Kurram district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, reported Dawn. 

During the rally, MNA Ali Wazir criticised the state’s policies that have led to a resurgence of terrorism in the country, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

PTM chief Manzoor Pashteen wondered how the military was unable to eliminate terrorists despite several operations.

The speakers said they would not allow Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to be impacted by terrorism again.

While rejecting the claim of the KP police that a short circuit caused CTD blasts, the speakers demanded a judiciary inquiry into the incident.

People in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been holding protests in various parts of the province against the resurgence of terrorism since the last few months.

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Social media users shared pictures of the Afghan Taliban’s flag, saying that the flags were displayed at several public places and houses in Gilgit.

تشویشناک | تازہ ترین
گلگت بلتستان کے مرکز گلگت شہر کے مرکزی شاہراہ سمیت گردونواح کے علاقوں میں افغانستان پر غیر قانونی قابض طالبان نامی دہشت گردوں کی قائم غیر قانونی حکومت کے متعدد جھنڈے سڑک/گھروں پر لہراتے ہوئے دیکھائی دئیے ہیں..@a_siab @ManzoorPashteen @memzarma @GulBukhari pic.twitter.com/6E2PhFRgVc

— Shahid Nadeem (@Sumuy0o) May 2, 2023

Pakistan has witnessed a resurgence of terrorism with the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) targeting security officials particularly.

TTP is supported by the Taliban-led Afghan government.

Earlier, a report stated at least 120 policemen were killed and 333 were injured in at least 77 attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, mostly claimed by TTP.

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There has been a sharp rise in terror attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa targeting police officials since the start of this year, with 120 policemen losing their lives in at least 77 attacks, mostly claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

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A large number of people protested the rise of terrorism in the region and demanded peace.

After Swat, the people of Lakki Marwat are also on the roads protesting against terrorism. Demanding peace for the region. pic.twitter.com/JlI37RVFDm

— Ihtisham Ul Haq (@iihtishamm) April 29, 2023

Citizens in Swat also protested for two consecutive days against the rise in terrorism.

Swat residents had gathered at Kabal Chowk, Swat, in a protest rally organised by the Swat rights movement, Swat Olasi Pasoon (Swat People’s Movement).

Earlier this week, explosions in an office of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in the Kabal area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) Swat Valley claimed 17 lives.

The cause of the blast is yet to be ascertained.

Last year, the residents of Swat had organised a series of protest demonstrations against the rise in terrorism in the region. They demanded the authorities to curtail the rise of terrorism in the region.

Pakistan has witnessed a resurgence of terrorism with the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) targeting security officials particularly.

TTP is supported by the Taliban-led Afghan government.

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The police have claimed that they were “attacked with stones, batons, and petrol” when they were trying to arrest the PTI leader last night in a corruption case.

The case has been registered against 50 individuals, including the former chief minister, in Lahore’s Ghalib Market police station under Section 7 of Anti-Terrorism Act 1997. 13 other charges have also been included in a First Information Report (FIR) which are related to attempted murder, rioting and assault on government officials, Dawn reported.

Last night, the raiding team, which included officials of Anti-Corruption Establish­ment (ACE) and police, had forcefully entered the former Punjab chief minister’s residence. The law enforcers used an armoured vehicle to break open the main gate and arrested 12 people, mostly his employees, from the house. Female police officers had also taken some women into custody.

The raiding teams remained on the premises of the former CM’s residence for more than three hours, but could not find him.

They had also tried to force their entry into the adjoining residence of Pakistan Muslim League-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, but they were resisted by Shujaat’s sons.

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