Pakistan had a record-breaking 51 percent increase in the number of terrorist strikes in a single year after the Afghan Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August of last year as a result of the withdrawal of the US military.
On Wednesday, data from the Pak Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS), an Islamabad-based think tank, showed that between August 15, 2021, and August 14, 2022, 250 attacks in Pakistan resulted in up to 433 fatalities and 719 injuries.
In contrast, it claimed, from August 2020 to August 14, 2021, the country experienced 165 attacks that left 294 people dead and 598 others injured.
This information was included in the fifth edition of Pips’ Paper Series, which was published on Wednesday.
According to the issue, which cited a United Nations report, there was no evidence that the Taliban government was making any efforts to curtail foreign terrorist groups’ activities on Afghan territory.
It further noted that, according to a UN study, foreign terrorist organizations with bases in Afghanistan use the Taliban’s win as an excuse to spread their propaganda throughout Central and South Asia and the rest of the world.
Al-Qaeda, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and the Islamic State of Khorasan (IS-K) are major terrorist organizations that are present in Afghanistan.
The Taliban have only taken action against IS-K thus far because they openly question the group’s authority.
The issue highlighted how citizens of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were experiencing a surge of dread and terror over the alleged return of TTP militants from Afghanistan in recent months.
According to the publication, which cited the UNHCR, more than 300,000 Afghans have fled to Pakistan since the Taliban took control of their country.
The number refutes the assertion made by Pakistani authorities that 60,000–70,000 Afghans had entered Pakistan since August of last year.
