Paradigm shift?
Reports of five men involved in the Peshawar attack arrested in Afghanistan are encouraging and mean that the cooperation achieved after President Ghani took office is beginning to bear fruit. The details are revealing. Afghan security forces apparently acted on information provided by Pakistani intelligence, and rounded these militants “in an eastern province”. That’s an area Afghan forces haven’t been too active in for years; neither was Nato for much of the occupation. Therefore the working arrangement is already unprecedented.
Islamabad realises, of course, that this will have to be a two-way street. Again, according to media chatter, the Afghans met Gen Raheel well immediately after Peshawar, but also handed a to-do list of their own. And since the tragedy followed Gen Raheel’s US visit and President Ghani’s groundbreaking trip to Pakistan, it seems all parties have finally converged on a workable plan of action. Not only are the Afghans reaching out to help Pakistan, the Americans have also started targeting TTP hideouts across the Durand Line. Pakistan, for its part, was quick to take out al Qaeda militants wanted by the US.
Importantly, this cooperation came in the backdrop of the US drawdown and insurgencies gaining momentum on both sides. When Zarb-e-Azb finally took off, it seems both the Americans and Afghans were convinced that things would finally change, and the Pakistani sanctuary for militants would come to an end. And Gen Raheel was obviously able to convince the Americans that the days of Good Taliban were gone. There are now signs of a deeper paradigm shift within Pakistan, which is also encouraging. Time has come for the government to decide about lashkars,jaishes and jamaats that have been allowed a free hand for far too long. Peshawar, tragic as it was, provided the platform from where a complete sweep can be made. Already Pakistan’s shift has caused a collective regional action. Every effort should be made to take these developments to their logical conclusion – ridding the region of the menace of terrorism.
