Pak, emerging regional security threats & policy options |
According to many international reports, Afghanistan has once again become a “connecting” and “convergence” hub for Al-Qaida, IS-KP, TTP, the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, BLA and allied groups targeting military and civilian infrastructure in Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Terrorist sanctuaries are exploiting a permissive security environment and former military infrastructure for recruitment, training and suicide bomber indoctrination, creating a renewed transnational threat cycle. Most regional countries are adopting a “wait-and-see” approach to the escalating Afghan-based threat, while the Pentagon appears reluctant to take decisive action against these groups spreading instability, chaos and disruption. As a result, regional trade and trans-regional connectivity have become primary targets of terrorism.
Pakistan’s intelligence and security agencies recently captured Azzam, a key IS-KP commander and founder of the notorious Al-Azaim Foundation, who served as the group’s global propaganda voice. The UN’s 16th Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team report called this arrest a significant blow to IS-KP’s regional operations. Azzam, an Afghan journalist turned commander, was designated a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” by the US in November 2021. He claimed responsibility for the August 2021 suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport, which killed 170 Afghans and 13 US service members, under the supervision of IS-KP leader Sanaullah Ghafari.
Azzam also served as the group’s moral arbiter for targeted atrocities, justifying killings through the “People of Action” manifesto following the assassination of three female journalists in 2021. The UN reports indicate........