Still more needed
Security was visibly tighter than usual this Moharram, which largely kept a lid on terrorist activity except, of course, for the two high profile incidents – Bolan (Balochistan, which killed 10) and Jacobabad (Sindh, killing approximately 30). Both were suicide attacks, which means the security chain, of which on-the-scene deployment is but one feature, remains broken. These issues are brought up every time there is a terrorist attack, yet if some action has been taken to integrate various intelligence and security agencies, it has escaped the media, and is not yet reflected in on-ground performance.
According to security officials themselves, transporting suicide attack apparatus is not a straight forward affair. Militants have to smuggle parts to the target area one by one, through various routes. It is at some of these stages, that can last from weeks to months, that our agencies are supposed to pick up intelligence chatter, etc, and interrupt the logistical chain of the attackers. Relying on last minute police presence to thwart suicide attacks is simply a losing tactic. Yet the parts of the National Action Plan (NAP) which mandate greater cohesion between law enforcement agencies remain far from fulfilled. That, among other things, gives the enemy the window to squeeze through and carry out even expected attacks.
Significantly, the government remains behind the curve on another essential part of this existential war – building the counter-narrative that was supposed to be at the centre of the battle for hearts and minds. Everybody in the equation understands well by now that the Taliban are the outcome of an indoctrination and brainwashing exercise to raise jihadis that goes back decades. Everybody also understood, at least till Zarb-e-Azb took off, that a similar brainwashing would be required to normalise them and their victims. This was called the crucial national narrative that would be vigorously spearheaded by the government. However, a year-and-a-half into the military operation, and almost a year since the Peshawar tragedy, neither the government nor the military has undertaken any such initiative. The sooner these needs are attended to the sooner such attacks can be prevented.
