The dying breaths of a menace
The car bomb attack in a Peshawar suburb and the beheading of Pakistani soldiers in Bajaur are the last gasps of a dying ghoul. The insurgents who are under attack see their end approaching while the terrorists targeting urban areas are finding that their reach continues to be restricted. They are further disheartened by the reports of their leaders being eliminated in quick succession. To boost the sagging morale of their followers, they are investing whatever is left of their material and manpower resources into ghastly and deplorable actions that make big news. The Peshawar car bomb packed with about 40 kilos of combustible material was aimed at creating an effect of the type. That its target was the Assistant Political Agent of North Waziristan also corroborates the point. The Bajaur beheadings are the fourth reported incident of the sort this year. These are also indicative of the desire to create widespread impact through inhuman and barbarous acts reminiscent of the Dark Ages. In two of these incidents the insurgents had attacked from bases set up inside Afghanistan.
An improvement in the working of security agencies has led to the arrest or elimination of important TTP terrorists. As a result, the militants are finding it increasingly difficult to penetrate into Punjab and Sindh where the number of terrorist attacks has considerably declined during the last two years. The deadliest attacks during the period have been confined to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan which neighbor the tribal areas. This shows that further improvement in intelligence gathering and a better coordination between the security agencies can put a stop to terrorist attacks in the country.
The headquarters of the militants are located in the tribal areas. Military operations in FATA have forced some of the insurgent groups to take refuge in neighboring Afghanistan from where they have launched some of the most lethal attacks. A lack of understanding between Pakistan and the US allows the insurgents to make use of the Afghan soil. Inaction in Waziristan after the hints that a targeted operation could be in the offing has allowed a number of terrorists to migrate to Afghanistan. There was a need to learn from the horrendous consequences of the escape of people like Mullah Fazlullah and Faqir Muhammad. There is a need to realize that coordination between Pakistan and the US and timely operation are indispensable to deliver a coup de grace to the insurgents. What the terrorists have done to the people and the army should be an eye opener to those who have been for one reason or another their apologists.
