(Shamim Shahid)
Once again, residents of Peshawar were jolted by the sound of explosions on Monday morning, just as mothers were preparing their children for school and professionals were heading to their offices. Terrorists targeted the heart of Peshawar Cantonment by attacking the Frontier Constabulary (FC) Headquarters, one of the city’s most sensitive locations.
According to Capital City Police Chief Dr. Mian Saeed Ahmad, the incident was a suicide attack that claimed the lives of three FC personnel and injured seven others, including a civilian tailor who happened to be nearby. In the ensuing counteraction, all four attackers, including the suicide bomber, were neutralized.
This was not the first attack on this highly sensitive site. On August 4, 2010, the former commandant of the same headquarters, Shaheed Safwat Ghayour, was killed in a similar assault. Since then, the area has remained under constant high-level security. Yet, over the past 25 years, terrorism and violent incidents have become a recurring reality in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Security agencies have long claimed significant successes, including dismantling terrorist networks and arresting key facilitators. However, the regional security environment remains complex. Relations with Afghanistan have grown increasingly strained, as Pakistan attributes numerous attacks to TTP elements operating from across the border, while the Afghan government maintains that these are internal issues for Pakistan to manage.
The Afghan Taliban leadership considers the TTP as temporary residents within Afghanistan, not directly involved in cross-border attacks. They have urged Pakistan to engage in dialogue to resolve disputes. Yet the TTP’s network is active across Pakistan, and counterterrorism responsibility rests firmly with Pakistan’s security forces.
The roots of contemporary militancy, however, trace back to the Afghan jihad against the former Soviet Union, which was funded and organized by global powers. In the latest chapter of this geopolitical game, the Doha Agreement of August 15, 2021, brought the Taliban to power in Afghanistan, raising expectations in Pakistan of a cooperative relationship. Yet these expectations have clashed with the realities of Afghanistan’s socio-political landscape, including deeply entrenched conservative and religious ideologies.
Since August 2021, Pakistan has made repeated efforts to engage and influence the Taliban leadership, but these efforts have largely failed. What was once a partnership has shifted toward tension and mutual mistrust. Recent clashes and diplomatic stalemates have affected trade, diplomacy, and social interactions between the two countries. While Afghanistan seeks alternative trade routes, Pakistan continues to focus on countering the TTP. Experts note that the border barrier has limited cross-border movement, yet gaps in policy and coordination persist.
The challenges are clear: decades-long mistrust between Pakistan and Afghanistan, coupled with internal disagreements over effective counterterrorism strategies, continue to hinder lasting solutions. It is time for Pakistan’s leadership in Rawalpindi and Islamabad to reassess outdated policies toward Afghanistan and adopt strategies that combine security measures with pragmatic diplomacy. Equally, political leadership must be empowered to pursue negotiated solutions to these complex domestic and foreign challenges.
The citizens of Pakistan, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, have already borne significant sacrifices. More loss of life and instability cannot be tolerated. Just as people in Punjab and Sindh aspire for peace and prosperity, residents of these regions deserve security, stability, and a return to normal life.
It is crucial to acknowledge the suffering of ordinary citizens those carrying the bodies of loved ones while grappling with poverty, unemployment, and underdevelopment. A comprehensive and inclusive approach, balancing security operations with political dialogue and socio-economic development, is essential to achieving lasting peace in Pakistan’s border regions.
