Template:Update Template:Infobox military conflictThe insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, also known as the War in North-West Pakistan or Pakistan's war on terror, is an ongoing armed conflict involving Pakistan and Islamist militant groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Jundallah, Lashkar-e-Islam (LeI), TNSM, al-Qaeda, and their Central Asian allies such as the ISIL–Khorasan (ISIL), Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, East Turkistan Movement, Emirate of Caucasus, and elements of organized crime. Formerly a war, it is now a low-level insurgency as of 2017.
The armed conflict began in 2004 when tensions rooted in the Pakistan Army's Hunt for al-Qaeda fighters in Pakistan's mountainous Waziristan area (in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas) soared and escalated into armed Resistance in the form of a organization.[1] Pakistan's actions were presented as its contribution to the U.S. War on terror.[2] Clashes further erupted between unified Pakistan Armed Forces and the Central Asian militant groups,[3] allied with the Arab fighters, in 2008–2010.[4][5] The foreign militants were joined by Pakistani non-military veterans of the Afghan War to the west, which subsequently established the TTP and other militant umbrella organisations, such as Lashkar-e-Islam.
The war depleted the country's manpower resources, and the outcomes outlined a deep effect on its national economy, since Pakistan had joined the American-led War on Terror.[6] As of 2018, according to Ministry of Finance (MoF) statistics and mathematical data survey collections, the economy has suffered direct and indirect losses as high as $126.79 billion since 2001 because of Pakistan's role as a "frontline state". According to the MoF-issued Pakistan Economic Survey 2010–2011, "Pakistan has never witnessed such a Catastrophic social and economic upheaval in its industry, even after dismemberment of the country by a direct war with India in 1971."[7]
After the Pakistani military launched a Extensive offensive against the Pakistani Taliban in 2014, its leaders escaped to Afghanistan.[8] By 2014, the casualty rates from terrorism in the country as a whole dropped by 40% as compared to 2011–2013, with even greater drops noted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,[9] despite a large massacre of schoolchildren by TTP terrorists in the province in December 2014. The reduction in hostilities eventually changed the conflict from a war to a relatively low-level conflict.[10]
After negotiations, the Tehreek-e-Taliban and the government announced a ceasefire in June 2022. However, on November 2022, the Tehreek-e-Taliban repudiated the ceasefire and called for nationwide terrorist attacks against Pakistan.[11]
Names and Title"s for the war
Various names have been applied to the conflict by the authors and historians. Names used in English include: Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, War in North-West Pakistan, Waziristan War, or the Pakistan's war on terror. On the other hand, political scientist, Farrukh Saleem, termed the war as the "Fourth Generation War" or the "4G War".[12]
Background
At the request of the Pakistani government, the Pakistan Army started an official troop deployment in the wake of the Battle of Tora Bora, also known as the Black Caves, in 2002.The Pakistan Muslim League,[13] one of the conservative parties, was particularly critical of the troop deployments in the area. For the first time since Pakistan gained independence in 1947,[14] the XI Corps, led by Lieutenant-General Jan Aurkzai, entered the Tirah Valley in the Khyber Agency. Afterwards, the army forces advanced into North Waziristan's Shawal Valley before reaching South Waziristan.[15] The Special Service Group [Navy] constructed a surveillance reconnaissance facility in 2003.[16] A sizable communist party in Peshawar began criticizing Musharraf and the US in 2003 and called for a halt to the operations.[17]
As the Tribes started to perceive the military's deployment and the PAF's frequent flights over the area as an act of subjugation,[18] the problems grew in 2003. In public remarks from 2003–2004, Musharraf defended army deployments[19] in the area in spite of reservations and urged for the removal of foreign fighters from South Waziristan on multiple occasions. South Waziristan was linked to at least two attempts on President Pervez Musharraf's life in December 2003. In response, the government increased military pressure in the region. But the battle was expensive: between 2004 and the beginning of 2005, the government suffered significant deaths in the military, leading it to abandon direct combat in favor of diplomatic measures.[20]
References
- ↑ "Pakistan Primer Pt. 1" Template:Webarchive The Rise of the Pakistani Taliban, Global Bearings, 27 October 2011.
- ↑ Killing scares media away from Waziristan. Christian Science Monitor(22 June 2006). Retrieved 25 August 2008.
- ↑ Central Eurasian and Central Asian Terrorism, U.S. Government. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
- ↑ Central Eurasian and Central Asian Terrorism, U.S. Government. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
- ↑ Terrorism from Central Asian Republics, Thompson, Clifford. Pakistan Strategic Think Tanks. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
- ↑ Heavy price: Pakistan says war on terror has cost nearly 50,000 lives there since 9/11. The Washington Times(27 March 2013). Retrieved 16 June 2013.
- ↑ War on terror cost Pakistan $67.9 billion. Dawn News, Economic Survey(20 June 2011). Retrieved 16 June 2013.
- ↑ What Will Happen to Afghanistan and Pakistan's Uneasy Border?. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
- ↑ A Small Measure of Progress. Foreign Policy(22 December 2014). Retrieved 12 March 2017.
- ↑ The Evolution and Potential Resurgence of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan. United States Institute of Peace(May 2021).
- ↑ TTP calls off ceasefire, orders terrorist attacks across Pakistan. The Express Tribune(2022-11-28). Retrieved 2022-11-29.
- ↑ 4G War. The News International Sunday, 20 April 2002(29 April 2012). Retrieved 7 June 2013.
- ↑ Govt warned against US operation in Fata. Dawn News archives, 2002(6 May 2002). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Tribesmen allow army to enter Shawal. Dawn News, May 2002(6 June 2002). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Tribesmen allow army to enter Shawal. Dawn News, May 2002(6 June 2002). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Tribesmen allow army to enter Shawal. Dawn News, May 2002(6 June 2002). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Occupation of sovereign states by US flayed. Dawn 2003, 10 August(10 August 2003). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Wana operation condemned. Dawn, 10 2003(6 October 2003). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Occupation of sovereign states by US flayed. Dawn archives, 2003(10 August 2003). Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ↑ Al Qaeda Finds Its Center of Gravity. The New York Times(10 September 2006). Retrieved 12 September 2006.