As the army stepped up its operations against militants in the tribal areas, 5,487 raids on terror suspects were carried out in Punjab, 322 in Sindh, 1,223 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 12 in Balochistan and 275 in Islamabad. According to statistics by the Federal Interior Ministry, 958 arrests have been made in Punjab, 244 in Sindh, 188 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 20 in Balochistan and 484 in Sindh.
“I am personally supervising the implementation of the National Action Plan and will ensure that it is followed through,” says Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. “There will be no more tolerance for militancy, terrorism and crime.”
He has formed a committee consisting of Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar, National Security Adviser Sartaj Aziz, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Minister for Information Pervez Rashid to help him supervise the efforts.
Inside the GHQ, a senior military source said the army “is taking the lead in fighting, and also helping the civilian government”. The Military Intelligence (MI) and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) are on their toes coordinating with civilian investigation agencies to fight terrorists in urban areas, he said.
"We are not just arresting militants but preempting hate speech"
“I see a resolve in the army led by Gen Raheel Sharif to sort these elements out,” says Maj Gen (r) Muhammad Ali. “He is implementing his words and there is a consensus in the country to go after the militants wherever and whoever they are.”
In Karachi, hit by both ethno-political and sectarian/Taliban militancy, the paramilitary Rangers are carrying out a series of operations. “The Sindh Rangers have eliminated several terrorist groups during the operation and weakened their capability to a large extent,” says Maj Gen Bilal Akbar, the director general of the force. “But the threat is not over yet.”
In Balochistan, the Frontier Constabulary (FC) and the MI are taking the lead. “The Balochistan Liberation Army, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jandullah, Baloch Republican Army and Afghan militants are our primary target,” said a security source in the province. Maj Gen Ejaz Shahid, the inspector general of FC, says coordination between his force and other law enforcement agencies has been improved.
Inside the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) headquarters, military officers have been briefed on the ‘financial backing’ and funding of terrorist organizations. A Karachi based money-changer, licensed by the State Bank of Pakistan, said intelligence agents called up all hundi operators and money changers and warned them against illegal transfer of funds.
In southern Punjab, an operation against sectarian and other terrorist organizations is being carried out by paramilitary forces and local police. “Former jihadis who have surrendered and want to live in peace under state watch are actually helping the state,” says a senior Punjab Police official. According to PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah, “the government is taking all steps necessary under the Prime Minister’s National Action Plan, which includes not just arresting militants but preempting hate speech. Over 50 people have been arrested and charged with sectarianism and hate speech.”
“I see a resolve in the army"
Newspaper reports last week said the Interior Ministry had banned the Haqqani Network and Jamaatud Dawa. But MQM Senator Col (r) Tahir Hussain Mashadi, member of a parliamentary standing committee, revealed that “when we asked the additional secretary for the Interior Ministry about the ban on the two groups, his answer was that the government had put them under observation.”
Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar refuses to comment on the issue as Jamaatud Dawa carries out countrywide protests against French newspaper Charlie Hebdo.
“We can’t finish these organization,” said an intelligence source, “but as state policy we will not distinguish between good or bad terrorism or Taliban. These organizations will die their own natural death.”