Fresh cracks have surfaced within the ranks of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as a splinter faction publicly accused the group’s central leadership of fabricating claims to boost its image, spread fear, and maintain relevance through propaganda.
The latest controversy began when TTP’s media wing, Umar Media, announced that a new militant group from Charsadda, allegedly led by “Abu Marwan Shah,” had pledged allegiance to TTP. According to the statement, the group included former associates of Qari Shakeel, a deceased commander once affiliated with Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a faction that had merged with TTP.
However, the claim was swiftly rejected by the spokesperson for Ghazi Media, believed to be aligned with the late TTP commander Omar Khalid Khorasani’s network. In a strongly worded rebuttal, they stated that “there is no such person by the name of Shah, and Qari Shakeel’s associates were already integrated into Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and TTP long ago.” The spokesperson further accused the central TTP leadership of spreading lies to manufacture the illusion of growing strength.
Analysts view this dispute as another sign of deepening fractures within the TTP, which has long struggled with internal divisions, personality clashes, and strategic disagreements. Critics argue that the group is increasingly resorting to disinformation and exaggeration to appear stronger than it is, a tactic often used to maintain influence over local populations and sustain extortion operations.
Security experts note that such propaganda serves multiple purposes: intimidating communities, justifying violence, and attracting fresh recruits and funds. However, as internal disputes spill into the public domain, the credibility of the TTP appears to be eroding even among sympathetic militant circles.
Observers warn that while the TTP attempts to present a united front, its increasing reliance on false claims reflects a weakening core — one that may be more focused on perception than actual strength.
