WASHINGTON, June 20:
Significant parts of Pakistan along its border with Afghanistan, including Waziristan, Balochistan and FATA, continue to be a safe haven for terrorists, the US State Department said in a report today.
Portions of Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and southwestern Balochistan province remained a safe haven for terrorist groups seeking to conduct domestic, regional and global attacks, the State Department said in its annual report on terrorism.
Al-Qaeda, the Haqqani Network, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, and other terrorist groups, as well as the Afghan Taliban, took advantage of these safe havens to plan operations in Pakistan and throughout the region, the report said.
In 2014, Pakistan launched military operations in North Waziristan Agency and Khyber Agency to eliminate terrorist safe havens, destroy terrorist infrastructure and disrupt terrorist communication networks, it said.
“The military operations had a significant impact on TTP safe havens, but some terrorist organisations in the region continued to operate, primarily along the border with Afghanistan,” the State Department said.
Particularly since the start of comprehensive military operations in North Waziristan displaced militants into Afghanistan, Pakistan has sought improved coordination to address cross-border threats from TTP emanating from safe havens in Afghanistan, the report said.
The US and Pakistan regularly discussed counter-terrorism and border-control efforts to interdict terrorists, it said.
The 2013 trilateral border standard operating procedures between Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) expired at the end of 2014. Pakistan and Afghanistan continued to negotiate a replacement bilateral agreement, it added.
According to the report, the potential for WMD trafficking, proliferation and terrorism remained a concern in Pakistan.
“Pakistan is a constructive and active participant in the Nuclear Security Summit process and the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism, and has worked to strengthen its strategic trade controls,” it said.
“The Export Control and Related Border Security Program increased the Government of Pakistan’s enforcement capacity by training Pakistani custom officials on International Border interdiction techniques,” the report said.
Pakistan has not taken action against LeT as the terror group continues to “operate, train, rally, propagandise and fundraise” in the country, according to the report.
“The Pakistani military undertook operations against groups that conducted attacks within Pakistan such as TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan), but did not take action against other groups such as Lashkar-e-Toiba, which continued to operate, train, rally, propagandise and fundraise in Pakistan,” the report said.
Afghan Taliban and Haqqani network leadership continued to find safe haven in Pakistan and although the country’s military operations disrupted the actions of these groups, it did not directly target them, the report said.
It said India remained a target of terrorist attacks, including operations launched by Maoist insurgents and domestic and transnational groups.
The level of terrorist violence was substantially unchanged from 2013, it said.
“Indian authorities continued to blame Pakistan for supporting terrorists operating in Jammu and Kashmir. On September 3, Al-Qaeda announced the establishment of a new branch in the Indian subcontinent,” the report said.
India deepened counter-terrorism cooperation with the US, highlighted by a September 30 summit between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi when both sides pledged greater cooperation in countering terrorist networks and in information sharing.
Even though only a small number of Indian nationals are believed to have joined the Islamic State, the Indian Government closely monitored the domestic threat the IS and other terrorist organisations posed, the report said.
The State Department said South Asia remained at the front line in the battle against terrorism.
Although Al-Qaeda’s core in Afghanistan and Pakistan has been seriously degraded, its global leadership continued to operate from remote locations in the region that the group has historically exploited for a safe haven.
Al-Qaeda’s presence in the region continued to face pressure from international, Afghan and Pakistani forces and Pakistan’s ongoing offensive in North Waziristan Agency launched in June 2014 further degraded the group’s freedom to operate, the report said.
Pressure on Al-Qaeda’s traditional safe haven has constrained the leadership’s capability to communicate effectively with affiliate groups outside of South Asia, it said. (PTI)
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