Is the Terrorism index true? A closer Look

According to a report released by the Institute for Peace and Economics in March 2026, Pakistan has been ranked first on the global terrorism list. This report, originally released six months ago is once again being debated on social media platforms. Social media users affiliated with a particular political group are citing it as evidence of the incompetence of state institutions, they argue that military institutions are responsible for this situation, which has brought disrepute to Pakistan. While this is the view held by supporters of that specific group, let us examine the actual facts. The list is based on data from the year 2025 and relies on four key factors first, the number of terrorist incidents in Pakistan, second, the resulting fatalities, third, the number of injuries, and fourth, instances of forced abductions or hostage taking within the country. Notably, three of these four factors are directly linked to terrorism and related events. The year 2025 proved to be a significant one for Pakistan on the diplomatic front, as the country fought a four-day war against India in May, conflict that was forcibly imposed upon it. Pakistan was immediately blamed for the tragic incident in Pahalgam. Pakistan responded and denied the allegation and challenged India to provide evidence, stating that if any armed group from Pakistan was involved, India should present proof to the international community rather than merely levelling accusations. Instead of providing evidence, India violated international law and attacked Pakistan. Even before launching a counter attack, Pakistan spent more than a day reiterating its position to the world, urging the international community to witness India’s fascist face revealed by its hasty, evidence free attack and demanding that India produce proof or face a Pakistani counter strike. Ultimately, following India’s persistent attacks, Pakistan launched a retaliatory response. India fell silent within a few hours after that US President mediated, bringing the Pakistan India conflict to a halt. To this day, no evidence regarding the Pahalgam incident has been provided. While India which had levelled accusations of terrorism acknowledged its defeat in the four day conflict, it failed to present any proof of Pakistan’s involvement in terrorism. That same year, India instigated proxy operations through the separatist organisation BLA concrete evidence of this was presented to the international media by the spokesperson for the Pakistan Army’s media wing during a press conference. Infact, Balochistan is a vital province of Pakistan, distinct from the others in terms of regional politics, geography, local environment, and the military situation. Its strategic importance is heightened by its borders with Iran and Afghanistan. Maintaining control is a challenging task when a single province shares borders with two different countries, making border security a consistently difficult undertaking. Such a geographical setting increases the risk of cross-border terrorism. Terrorism originating from Afghanistan has caused severe difficulties for Pakistan. A primary reason for this is the challenge of distinguishing between patriots and terrorists when people sharing similar lifestyles, languages, and cultures intermingle. Furthermore, the backing of the TTP by Afghan armed groups fuelled terrorist incidents within Pakistan. TTP operatives, often disguised as Afghan civilians, targeted innocent people across the border and within Balochistan & KP. Similarly, ordinary citizens in Balochistan were targeted in operations carried out by the BLA. Although the state repeatedly called upon these armed groups to lay down their arms, these terrorist groups sustained by Indian funding remained completely unwilling to do so. Their primary targets are security forces and innocent peoples, they are funded by RAW and fire upon their own people. Consequently, the actions of the BLA and TTP acts of terrorism originating from across the border are being mischaracterised as Pakistan’s own terrorism, when in reality, this is terrorism instigated by India and Afghanistan.
In the past, individuals affiliated with these very groups initiated a wave of suicide attacks across Pakistan. The state subsequently launched successful operations Zarb-e-Azb and Zarb-e-Amn against these armed groups, transforming the country into a haven of peace. Even now, Pakistan is contending with armed groups along its borders and in Balochistan & KP that are funded by a neighbouring country. Developments following the evacuation of Afghan citizens have further exposed the nature of the India Afghanistan relationship.
This also raises questions about the methodology of the index. Can a country be judged solely on the number of attacks, deaths, injuries and kidnappings occurring within its borders without clearly distinguishing between terrorism originating domestically and attacks carried out by groups operating across international borders? If the source and responsibility of these attacks are not sufficiently separated, can the ranking accurately reflect the actual terrorism situation or fairly determine which state is responsible? Therefore, an analysis of the data and the metrics used to assess terrorism in this report makes it clear that Pakistan itself desires global peace. Terrorism is being exported here from across the border with backing from India and Afghanistan, while Pakistan simultaneously combats these armed groups in two provinces, manages its internal situation, monitors global economic and political dynamics, and pursues peace efforts in the Middle East including acting as a mediator between Iran and the US. Given these circumstances, issuing a report that frames Pakistan based on this externally imposed terrorism is unjustified, contrary to the facts, and reflects an irresponsible attitude.