ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has devised a three-pronged “economic, political and administrative” strategy against banned groups, the country’s information minister said as the government announced it had taken control of 182 religious schools and detained more than 100 people as part of an intensified counter-terrorism push.
The latest actions represent Pakistan’s most sprawling moves against banned outfits in decades and appear to be aimed at groups Islamabad has historically cast a benign eye on because they attack Indian soldiers in disputed Kashmir rather than Pakistani targets.
“We have made a three-pronged strategy which has economic, political, and administrative dimensions,” Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on “Naya Pakistan,” a political talk show aired on Geo TV on Sunday night.
“The first step is to de-weaponize [banned groups] and then economic rehabilitation will take place”, Chaudhry said. “There are many people who want to voluntarily delink themselves from these groups. We are willing to give them a chance to reintegrate back into society.”
Pakistan is currently facing mounting international pressure to act against militant groups, particularly those that carry out attacks in India, including Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), which claimed responsibility for a Feb. 14 attack that killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary troopers.
Simmering tensions in the wake of the bombing led to a major confrontation between the nuclear-armed rivals, with both countries carrying out aerial strikes and engaging in dogfights that sparked fears of all-our war last month.
Pakistan insists the latest push is part of a long-planned drive and not a response to Indian or global pressure.
Last year, the global watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), put Pakistan on a watch-list of nations with inadequate controls to prevent terror financing and money laundering, handicapping chances of attracting Western investment in Pakistan’s fragile economy.
“This [crackdown] was on the cards but now since international pressure is mounting, particularly the compulsion of Financial Action Task Force, the government has decided to move,” said Salman Ali Bhittani, a lecturer at Quaid-e-Azam University.
Similar crackdowns in the past have been considered mostly cosmetic and banned organizations have managed to survive and keep functioning under new names.
But Chaudhry said this crackdown was different because instead of just taking over religious seminaries and mosques considered breeding grounds for militancy, the government intended to overhaul the country’s educational system in its entirety.
“We don’t need only madrassa reforms but the entire education system requires reforms,” Chaudhry said. “We have made a National Syllabus Committee to overview the overall syllabus.”
Defense analyst Mona Alam said another difference between past and previous actions by the government was that this time, Pakistan’s all-powerful army, generally considered in charge of national security strategy, was on the “same page” with the civilian leadership on how to deal with banned groups.
“The breather for the current ruling party is the fact that for the first time in many years, there is actually no civil-military rift or confrontation,” Alam told Arab News. “Evidently both are on the same page.”
The government’s latest crackdown also includes a political dimension whereby after a process of de-radicalization, former members of banned parties will be able to join mainstream political parties.
“This is the right time we should mainstream those who want to get mainstreamed and should eliminate those militants who do not accept the state and its constitution,” foreign affairs expert Qamar Cheema said.
Pakistan adopts three-pronged strategy against banned organizations
Pakistan adopts three-pronged strategy against banned organizations
- Information minister Chaudhry says Islamabad obligated to take action against UN-blacklisted groups
- Militants who surrender and lay down arms will be integrated into economy, politics and society, minister says
Pakistan’s president defends ongoing strikes in Afghanistan, urges Kabul to dismantle militants
- Afghanistan on Thursday launched attacks in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes the previous Sunday
- Pakistan’s military says it is only targeting Afghan military installations to avoid civilian casualties
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s president on Monday defended his country’s ongoing military strikes in neighboring Afghanistan, saying Islamabad tried all forms of diplomacy before targeting militants operating from Afghan territory, and called on the Taliban government in Kabul to disarm groups responsible for attacks in Pakistan.
Pakistan earlier said it is in “open war” with Afghanistan, alarming the international community. The border area remains a stronghold for militant organizations including Al-Qaeda and the Daesh (Islamic State) group.
“(The Afghan Taliban) must choose to dismantle the terror groups that survive on conflict and its war economy,” Asif Ali Zardari said during a speech to lawmakers, adding that “no state accepts serial attacks on its soil.”
Afghanistan on Thursday launched attacks in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes the previous Sunday. Since then, Pakistan has carried out operations along the border, with Information Minister Attaullah Tarar claiming the killing of 435 Afghan forces and the capture of 31 Afghan positions.
Kabul has denied such claims.
In Afghanistan, the deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said Pakistan’s military fired mortar shells at a refugee camp in eastern Kunar province, killing three children and injuring three others.
Afghanistan’s defense ministry said Afghan forces carried out strikes targeting a Pakistani military facility near Paktia province, causing “substantial losses and heavy casualties.”
Pakistan’s military did not respond to questions. It has said Pakistan is only targeting Afghan military installations to avoid civilian casualties.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge of violence in recent months and blames it on the outlawed Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP. It operates both inside Pakistan and from Afghan territory.
Islamabad accuses Afghanistan’s Taliban government of providing safe havens for the TTP, which Kabul denies.
The latest cross-border fighting ended a ceasefire brokered by Qatar and Turkiye in October. The two sides failed to reach a permanent agreement during talks in Istanbul.
Zardari reiterated Pakistan’s call for talks, saying, “We have never walked away from dialogue.”
The Pakistani leader again accused Afghanistan of acting as a proxy for India by sheltering militant groups.
“Stop being used by another country as a battlefield for their ambitions,” he said.
Zardari cited a recent report from the United Nations Security Council’s monitoring team that described the presence of militant groups in Afghanistan as an extra-regional threat.
