'Forces to carry out operation if terrorists refuse to vacate Bajaur'

• Security forces give option to tribe to vacate Bajaur for operation.
• No talks with terrorists until they submit to state: security sources.
• Terrorists using negotiations as smokescreen to gear up for war.

PESHAWAR: Security forces have laid out multiple options to the tribal jirgas in Bajaur for negotiations with the khawarij — the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — where an operation will be carried out if the terrorists do not leave the area, The News reported on Saturday.

The first option, as per the security sources, demands the terrorists to leave Bajaur, whereas the second option relates to the tribes' evacuation for the operation so that the khawarij can be brought to an end.

Rejecting any kind of government-level talks with the terrorists and their facilitators in Bajaur, the sources have ruled out negotiations until the militants completely submit to the state.

Also, the sources noted that deliberate efforts were being made to create ambiguity in discussions about the tribes and the khawarij in Bajaur, whereas the ground realities were quite the opposite.

The terrorists, they said, were using negotiations as a smokescreen to gear up for war and were living among the general population in Bajaur while simultaneously engaging in terrorist and criminal activities.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, including Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and security officials, has presented three points to the tribes:

• These khawarij, most of whom are Afghan citizens, should be expelled from the area.
• If the tribes cannot expel the khawarij themselves, they should vacate the area for one or two days so that security forces can bring them to their end.
• If both these steps are not possible, maximum efforts will be made to avoid harm to ordinary citizens, because the operation against terrorists will continue in any case.
  

The sources further stated that the tribal jirga is a logical step to ensure public safety before the operation. However, neither religion, nor the state, nor the values of the brave people of KP allow any compromise with the terrorists — the enemies of Islam and the state.

The security sources have made it clear that only the state has the authority to carry out any kind of armed action. They said that last year, there were 600 terrorist attacks inside Pakistan, which had the financial and operational support of the Afghan Taliban.

The prospects of an operation in Bajaur come as the country has witnessed an uptick in terror activities since 2021, especially in KP and Balochistan.

According to a report released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), an Islamabad-based think tank, there were 78 terrorist attacks across the country during June, which resulted in at least 100 deaths.

Among the fatalities were 53 security personnel, 39 civilians, six militants, and two members of local peace committees.

A total of 189 people were injured, including 126 members of the security forces and 63 civilians.

Altogether, the violence and operations led to 175 deaths in June — among them, 55 security personnel, 77 militants, 41 civilians, and two peace committee members.

The security forces have been engaged in ongoing anti-terror operations throughout the country and eliminated 33 India-backed terrorists attempting to infiltrate the country from Afghanistan in Balochistan's Zhob on Friday.

A large cache of weapons, ammunition, and explosives was also recovered, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement.