KARACHI: The Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which have recently stepped up their attacks in Pakistan, continue to get financial and logistical support from Kabul, a United Nations (UN) report said this month, amid Islamabad’s repeated calls for Afghanistan to rein in the group.
The disclosure was made in the 35th report of the UN’s Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, dated Feb. 6, which was submitted to the UN Security Council.
The panel of experts established by the UN Security Council to support sanctions implementation against individuals and entities linked with militant groups submits biannual reports assessing the threat landscape to devise global policy and security strategies.
The report, which covered the period from Jul. 1, 2024 till Dec. 13, 2024, said the “status and strength of TTP in Afghanistan had not changed.” Pakistani officials have in the past said the TTP had around 10,000 fighters in its ranks.
“The ambition and scale of its attacks on Pakistan, though, had significantly increased, with over 600 attacks during the reporting period, including from Afghan territory,” it said.
“The Taliban continued to provide TTP with logistical and operational space and financial support, with one Member State noting that the family of [TTP chief] Noor Wali Masoud received a monthly payment of 3 million Afghanis (roughly $43,000).”
The development comes as Pakistan struggles to contain a surge in militancy in its western regions since a fragile truce between the TTP and Islamabad broke down in November 2022.
The TTP and other militant groups have frequently targeted security forces convoys and check-posts, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials in recent months. Last year, the Pakistani military reported, 383 soldiers and 925 militants were killed in various clashes.
The TTP is a separate group from the Afghan Taliban, but Pakistani officials believe the two to be allies. The Pakistani government says the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 has emboldened TTP fighters.
“There was increased collaboration between TTP, the Afghan Taliban and Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent, conducting attacks under the banner of Tehrik-e Jihad Pakistan,” the UN report said.
“Greater facilitation among these groups and TTP in terms of the provision of suicide bombers and fighters and ideological guidance might transform the latter into an extra-regional threat and an umbrella organization for other terrorist groups operating in the region.”
Islamabad has frequently blamed the surge in militant activities on Afghanistan, accusing it of sheltering and supporting militant groups that launch cross-border attacks. Afghan officials deny involvement and insist that Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
Kabul continues to support Pakistani Taliban, recent UN report says
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Kabul continues to support Pakistani Taliban, recent UN report says
- The development comes as Pakistan struggles to contain a surge in militancy since a fragile truce between the TTP and Islamabad broke down in 2022
- The ambition and scale of the TTP’s attacks on Pakistan had ‘significantly increased,’ with over 600 attacks from Jul. till Dec. 2024, report says
Pakistan opposition rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to demand release of Imran Khan
- PTI-led gathering calls the former PM a national hero and demands the release of all political prisoners
- Government says the opposition failed to draw a large crowd and accuses PTI of damaging its own politics
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s opposition led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party demanded the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan at a rally in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, describing him as a national hero who continues to command public support.
The gathering came days after a rare and strongly worded briefing by the military’s media chief, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, who dismissed Khan as “narcissistic” and “mentally ill” on Friday while responding to the former premier’s allegations that Pakistan’s chief of defense forces was responsible for undermining the constitution and rule of law.
He said that Khan was promoting an anti-state narrative which had become a national security threat.
The participants of the rally called for “civilian supremacy” and said elected representatives should be treated with respect.
“We, the people of Pakistan, regard Imran Khan as a national hero and the country’s genuinely elected prime minister, chosen by the public in the February 8, 2024 vote,” said a resolution presented at the rally in Peshawar. “We categorically reject and strongly condemn the notion that he or his colleagues pose any kind of threat to national security.”
“We demand immediate justice for Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi and all political prisoners, and call for their prompt release,” it added, referring to Khan’s wife who is also in prison. “No restrictions should be placed on Imran Khan’s meetings with his family, lawyers or political associates.”
Addressing the gathering, Sohail Afridi, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, denied his administration was not serious about security issues amid increased militant activity. However, he maintained the people of his province had endured the worst of Pakistan’s conflict with militancy and urged a rethinking of long-running security policies.
The resolution asked the federal government to restore bilateral trade and diplomatic channels with Afghanistan, saying improved cross-border ties were essential for the economic stability of the region.
The trade between the two neighbors has suffered as Pakistan accuses the Taliban administration in Kabul of sheltering and facilitating armed groups that it says launch cross-border attacks to target its civilians and security forces. Afghan officials deny the claim.
The two countries have also had deadly border clashes in recent months that have killed dozens of people on both sides.
Some participants of the rally emphasized the restoration of democratic freedoms, judicial independence and space for political reconciliation, calling them necessary to stabilize the country after years of political confrontation.
Reacting to the opposition rally, Information Minister Attaullah Tarrar said the PTI and its allies could not gather enough people.
“In trying to build an anti-army narrative, they have ruined their own politics,” he said, adding that the rally’s reaction to the military’s media chief’s statement reflected “how deeply it had stung.”
“There was neither any argument nor any real response,” he added, referring to what was said by the participants of the rally.
