‘Enough is enough’: Balochistan minister suggests offering ‘drone bases’ to US to target militant safe havens in Afghanistan
A day after a deadly attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan claimed the lives of 23 Pakistan Army soldiers, Balochistan caretaker Information Minister Jan Achakzai has proposed a set of counterterrorism measures, including offering the United States “drone bases to target militant sanctuaries in Afghanistan”.
The minister shared a series of counterterrorism measures in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account, noting that issuing a demarche to the Afghan government was insufficient and stressed the need for more stringent measures.
In the deadliest attack on security forces this year, at least 23 Pakistan Army soldiers were martyred and more than 30 troops wounded after militants belonging to the Tehreek-i-Jihad Pakistan (TJP) stormed a compound used by the military in Dera Ismail Khan’s Daraban area, in the early hours of Tuesday. A total of 25 soldiers were martyred in the attack and security operations in Dera Ismail Khan.
Six militants who stormed the building were killed. Separately, two military operations in Darazinda and Kolachi resulted in the death of 21 militants and claimed the lives of two soldiers, the military’s media wing had said in a statement.
The TJP claimed responsibility for the attack and also released a two-minute video, purporting to show militants targeting security personnel with thermal scopes. Security officials, however, claimed the video was not authentic, according to a Dawn report.
Later, Pakistan demanded immediate and verifiable actions from the Afghan government against militant outfits fomenting terror in Pakistan, as it issued a demarche to Afghan Charge d’Affaires Sardar Ahmad Shakib.
Foreign Secretary Syrus Sajjad Qazi, who summoned Shakib, stressed the urgency and gravity of the situation, calling for a comprehensive investigation and decisive action against the perpetrators of the recent attack.
Pakistan demanded action against all terrorist groups, including their leadership and sanctuaries. The foreign secretary insisted on the apprehension and extradition of the perpetrators as well as the leaders of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) from Afghanistan..
Reacting to the fresh terror incident today, Achakzai said the DI Khan attack had crossed “all national security redlines of Pakistan”.
“We must consider reprisal attacks in Afghanistan,” declared the provincial minister, as part of the seven measures he proposed.
He said “special targeted operations, air strikes, border closure with Afghanistan, return of Afghan refugees, anti-TTA political opposition gathering in Islamabad” must be considered.
The minister added: “Last, offer US drone bases to target AlQ [Al Qaeda] and other militants sanctuaries in Afghanistan.”
He stressed the need to convey a message to the Afghan Taliban, stating, “We will not tolerate this double game. Enough is enough.”
Surging terrorism in Pakistan
Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities in recent months, especially in KP and Balochistan, after the TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November last year.
On Nov 3, a bomb blast targeting police personnel killed five people and injured over 20 others in DI Khan.
On Oct 31, a policeman was martyred after unknown militants opened fire on a police camp in Dera Ismail Khan. That same day, two soldiers were martyred in an IED blast in the South Waziristan district.
According to data released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, the country experienced a 34 per cent increase in anti-state violence last month. It showed KP as the most affected province, documenting 51 attacks, causing 54 fatalities and 81 injuries.