Terrorism surged 195pc in KP, Cabinet told

ISLAMABAD  –  The federal cabinet on Sunday recommend­ed the imposition of emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution, citing a deteriorating security situation, a staggering 195 per cent increase in terrorist incidents and serious gaps in the pro­vincial government’s counter­terrorism preparedness, as two key security reports highlighted escalating threats, institution­al weaknesses and a shortage of resources for law enforce­ment agencies. The cabinet, which met under the chairman­ship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, reviewed the worsening law-and-order situation and the growing threat of terrorism in the province before advising the prime minister to recommend that President Asif Ali Zardari exercise his constitutional pow­ers to impose emergency in KP.

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Following the cabinet’s deci­sion, the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that formal advice had been dispatched to the Pres­idency for further action.

According to the Prime Min­ister’s Office, the cabinet was briefed on the deteriorating se­curity situation and the prov­ince’s worsening terrorism chal­lenge. It conducted a detailed review of the circumstances, ex­pressing concern over what it de­scribed as the provincial govern­ment’s deliberate disengagement from the fight against terrorism.

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195 PERCENT SURGE IN TERRORIST INCIDENTS:

Two special security reports, prepared by the KP police and intelligence agencies, presented before cabinet gave a troubling picture of the province’s secu­rity landscape, documenting a sharp rise in terrorist attacks, the emergence of new opera­tional tactics and serious short­comings in the capacity of law enforcement institutions.

The reports recorded a 195 per cent increase in terrorist in­cidents in KP between March 1, 2024, and September 23, 2026, describing the trend as a serious and alarming challenge to the province’s security.

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The assessments attribut­ed the growing threat to mul­tiple factors, including terror­ist elements operating from Afghanistan, local facilitators, shortcomings in the provincial government’s policies and what the reports described as a soft approach towards terrorist ele­ments. They also pointed to in­adequate provincial prepared­ness, insufficient attention to counterterrorism and a lack of effective preventive measures, which had created opportunities for terrorist networks to expand their activities.

The reports further identi­fied links between terrorist net­works, local facilitation and illegal activities as a serious chal­lenge for security institutions.

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POLICE AND SECURITY FORCES BEAR THE BRUNT:

The reports revealed that po­lice and security institutions were the primary targets in a substantial majority of terrorist attacks during the current year.

Around 73 per cent of terrorist attacks recorded in 2026 target­ed police and security personnel, underscoring the growing pres­sure on frontline law enforcement agencies. A particularly alarming trend was the increasing use of drones by terrorist elements. Ac­cording to the reports, no drone attacks against police and securi­ty institutions were recorded in 2024, but the number of such at­tacks reached 170 in 2026.

The reports also highlighted a nearly 107 per cent increase in terrorist drone attacks over a one-year period, pointing to a significant shift in the operation­al capabilities and tactics em­ployed by militant groups.

The use of improvised explo­sive devices (IEDs) has also re­mained a major concern. The number of IED attacks rose to 181 in 2025, while 159 inci­dents had already been record­ed by September 2026, the re­ports stated. The assessments stressed that the changing meth­ods of terrorist groups required a substantial improvement in the operational capabilities, equipment and preparedness of police and other law enforce­ment agencies.

The security reports identi­fied serious deficiencies in the operational strength and re­sources of the KP police and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), warning that these short­comings were undermining the province’s ability to respond ef­fectively to the evolving threat. More than 9,000 positions in the provincial police force were re­portedly vacant, while the police and CTD faced an acute shortage of modern weapons and essen­tial operational equipment.

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