Pakistan’s army turns terror groups into domestic shields
Pakistan’s ongoing reliance on militant proxies highlights a dangerous pattern in its security strategy. For decades, the Pakistan Army and its intelligence agency, the ISI, have used jihadist groups as tools of statecraft, deploying them in various conflicts to further national interests. The recent redeployment of Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa underscores the military’s continued addiction to using terrorism as a policy.
These militant groups, once directed at India, are now tasked with addressing internal security concerns, particularly monitoring the growing threat of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Instead of strengthening its own intelligence and military forces, Pakistan has turned once again to these groups, highlighting a failure of professional governance and counterinsurgency measures.
This strategy reflects Pakistan’s long history of creating and nurturing jihadist elements, and it showcases a dangerous cycle where militants are not dismantled but merely relocated for new objectives. The rise of the Afghan Taliban, which Pakistan initially supported, has only exacerbated this issue, as the Taliban refuses to curb the Pakistani Taliban, whom Pakistan once nurtured. The irony of the situation is stark: Pakistan’s military, having sowed the seeds of extremism, now finds itself under siege from the very forces it once empowered.
The relocation of these groups to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa adds another layer of complexity to an already unstable region. Locals, who have suffered through decades of conflict, now face the harsh reality of an even more militarized environment. The Pakistan Army, rather than taking responsibility for its security challenges, continues to outsource its defense to militant groups, further entrenching violence and instability.
This strategy is not one of foresight but of expediency, with Pakistan choosing short-term solutions at the expense of long-term peace. The international community should recognize the true nature of Pakistan’s role in perpetuating terrorism, as it continues to use groups like Jaish-e-Muhammad and Hizbul Mujahideen as instruments of its security policy. For India and the world, this move serves as a reminder that Pakistan’s terrorist infrastructure remains intact, despite its claims of victimhood.
In the end, Pakistan’s addiction to jihadist proxies condemns it to perpetual instability and moral bankruptcy. Until it dismantles the machinery of terror it has so carefully cultivated, Pakistan will remain a state that nurtures terrorism, destabilizing not only itself but the entire region.
