Rising tide of terrorism

As terrorists continue to strike at will – mainly in Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provinces – the month of February witnessed more civilian deaths than of soldiers. According to the findings of Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, an Islamabad-based think tank, February 2025 marked the first month since August 2024 in which civilian casualties (55) surpassed those of security forces (47) in a total of 79 terrorist attacks.

A closer look at the figures shows that of the 55 civilians losing their lives in terrorist attacks in the country in the month February, 35 – nearly two-thirds – fell victim to Baloch insurgents, mostly in ethnic attacks. In one such attack, seven people hailing from Punjab were shot dead in Barkhan district of Balochistan on February 18. Before that, on February 14, as many as 11 coalmine workers, hailing from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, lost their lives when the vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a roadside explosion in Harnai district of Balochistan.

Such ethnic attacks are not isolated incidents. The previous year witnessed nearly half a dozen attacks targeting people based on their ethnic backgrounds. People have been offloaded from buses and executed after their identity cards are checked; targeted at construction sites; gunned down at barber shops; etc. While the ethnic attacks continue in Balochistan with impunity, the state seems to have no answer to them.

The state's response has so far been reactionary, as against the need for a comprehensive and coordinated security strategy to deal with the rising tide of terrorism. Such a strategy should prioritise operations based on intelligence input as well as addressing the grievances that fuel violence in the restive province. The lack of an effective action not only raises questions about the capacity of the state to prevent terrorist attacks, but also sends a wrong signal to people that they have to arrange for their security themselves.