On January 6, Director General (DG) Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry held a press conference, addressing the issues of terrorism haunting the country. This time, he openly blamed the ruling Afghan regime for supporting terrorists who were wreaking havoc on the land of Pakistan.

Since September 2021, Pakistan’s grievances have been that the Afghan Taliban permit obnoxious elements of all types to flourish in Afghanistan, making the country a bona fide incubator of terrorists, ranging from the notorious Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State (Daesh) to assorted unknown groups. Both the TTP and Daesh share the same geography and matching ethnicity, despite surviving under dissimilar shades of thought. Switching of manpower between the two has also been noticed, making one conclude that apparent titles are just for distinction and some nuanced variation of objectives; otherwise, both aim for the same end: assert a voice through the use of force.

Pakistan’s Delivery Trap

At the press conference, the DG ISPR not only blamed the Afghan Taliban for being “the mother of all terror groups”, but he also questioned the legitimacy of the ruling regime, which is interim and which should hold elections to transfer power to the winners, as per the Doha Accord of February 2020. The Afghan Taliban enjoy no legitimacy to stay in power and run Afghanistan indefinitely. The major challenge they are facing is the scarcity of resources to overcome, which they rely either on........

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