Militant attacks in the country have dropped to six years low after one year of operation Zarb-e-Azb.
Islamabad based Think Tank Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) which monitors militant activities in South Asia, Central Asia and West Asia revealed that before the start of Zarb-e-Azb, the recorded average militant attacks had gone up to 154 attacks per month. The count had now dropped more than 50 percent to 71 attacks per month. PICSS claimed. The think-tank noted that average militant attacks after one year of Zarb-e-Azb is lowest since 2008.
Operation Zarb-e-Azb not only improved overall security situation in the country but it also caused serious dents to the unity of TTP which splinted into at least three major factions after the operation started.
Before start of Zarb-e-Azb, average militant attacks per month in KPK province were 49 and they dropped by 75 %: there were 12 attacks per month in first five and a half months of 2015.
In FATA the average militant attacks before Zarb-e-Azb were 31 which have now dropped to 16 attacks per month.
To support Zarb-e-Azb and control blow back in major cities, security forces had launched Intelligence Based Operations (IBOs) across the country. These operations helped in limiting the blow back although militants managed to carry out some high profile attacks in Peshawar, Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Shikarpur.
Karachi has also seen remarkable reduction in anti-state violence emanating from groups like TTP, Al-Qaeda and their local affiliates. Prior to Zarb-e-Azb there were 25 attacks in Karachi each month and had dropped to 9 after a 64 percent decline. Security Forces have gunned down some key commanders of Al-Qaeda, TTP and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi in the city recently.
Punjab also witnessed a decline in overall number of militant attacks but the province was seen as a major target of high profile attacks as militants carried out attacks at Wahga Border and two churches. Imam Bargahs prominent leaders of a Sunni Sectarian group in Rawalpindi were also targeted by the
Despite consistent decline in militant attacks during last one year, PICSS has noticed an upward trend in militant attacks in May and first fifteen days of June 2015. There are strong indicators that militants have been trying to regroup and some regional players are suspected to be behind the escalation of militant attacks in Pakistan.