Politically conducive environment fueling terrorism in KP: DG ISPR

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Tuesday said that Afghan nationals were behind major terrorist attacks carried out in Pakistan during 2025.

Addressing a press briefing, he said that the sole purpose of the briefing was to shed light on  counter-terrorism efforts as terrorism remains the most serious threat facing the country.

The DG ISPR described 2025 as a decisive year in Pakistan’s fight against terrorism, citing multiple factors behind this assessment.

He said that Pakistan’s law enforcement agencies, including the army, police, Federal Constabulary and intelligence services, carried out a total of 75,175 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) during 2025. He said that this averaged 206 operations per day. Of these, 14,658 were conducted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 58,778 in Balochistan and 1,739 in other parts of the country.

He said a total of 5,397 terrorist incidents were recorded nationwide last year. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accounted for 3,811 incidents, or 71 per cent, while 1,557 incidents, or 29 per cent, occurred in Balochistan. Only 29 incidents were reported from other regions.

The DG ISPR said that security forces killed 2,597 terrorists in 2025. Of these, 1,800 were eliminated in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 784 in Balochistan and 10 in other areas. He added that 1,235 civilians and personnel from law enforcement agencies lost their lives during counter-terrorism operations over the same period.

Sharing figures related to suicide attacks, he said that 27 such incidents took place during the year. Sixteen occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 10 in Balochistan and one in Islamabad at the judicial complex. He added that two of these attacks involved female suicide bombers.

Referring to the high number of incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the DG ISPR said that the main reason was what he described as a politically conducive environment for militants and a growing nexus between politics and terrorism in the province.

He also pointed out that terrorism began to rise again from 2021. That year, he said, 193 terrorists were killed while 592 law enforcement personnel were martyred, reflecting a ratio of one militant killed for every three security personnel lost. In contrast, he said, the ratio improved in 2025, with 2,597 terrorists killed and 1,235 security personnel martyred, bringing it closer to two militants killed for every one casualty.