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Kabul govt mum as terrorists use US-made weapons in Pakistan

by Mateen Haider in The Nation, Dec18, 2023
ISLAMABAD – In recent harrowing incidents of terrorism in Pakistan, a dis­turbing revelation has emerged – the use of non-local American made weapons, believed to be procured from Afghanistan, by various militant groups operat­ing within the country.

This revelation underscores the pressing need for a thorough examination of the evolving se­curity dynamics in the region, particularly the presence of huge leftover weapons by US forces in Afghanistan.

For over two decades, Paki­stani security forces are grappled with the persistent challenge of terrorism, with the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) prominently involved in this on­going battle against Pakistani state. The emergence of Amer­ican weaponry in the hands of these TTP militants adds a new layer of complexity to the intri­cate security landscape of Pa­kistan. The evidence suggest­ing the use of American arms by TTP militants points a direct finger at the Afghanistan gov­ernment headed by Afghan Tali­ban which is criminally silent on how these weapons are reach­ing out to militants.

It raises critical questions not only about the safe havens pro­vided within Afghanistan but also about the ease of access these groups have to a substan­tial arsenal of weapons.

This unsettling connection be­tween Afghan safe havens and the arming of militant outfits prompts serious doubts about the commitment of the Afghan transitional government to fos­tering regional peace and stabil­ity. The impact of this illicit flow of weaponry is unmistakable in the escalating frequency and intensity of rising terrorist at­tacks in Pakistan.

The deployment of these arms by various militant groups pos­es a direct threat to the security and stability of Pakistan and the region as a whole.

As the international commu­nity grapples with the after­math of the American with­drawal from Afghanistan, this revelation adds urgency to the need for concerted efforts to curb the flow of arms and ad­dress the underlying issues fu­elling terrorism in the region.

On December 13, a truck car­rying onions packed in sacks from Afghanistan was checked by Customs authorities which turned out to be loaded with heavy weapons concealed in onion sacks. It may be recalled here that the banned BLA used American weapons in February 2022 while attacking FC posts in Noshki and Pangoor in Ba­lochistan.

TTP used American weapons in the Zhob cantonment terror attack on 12th July 2023.

On 6th September 2023, TTP terrorists used American weapons on a major terror at­tack on two Pakistani border security posts in Chiltral.

On 4th November 2023 American weapons were used in attack on the PAF base Mian­wali by TTP militants which were identified as RPG-7, AK-74, M-4, M-16/A4 weapons.

On 12th December 2023 ter­ror attack in Daraban area of D I Khan militants used night gog­gles and US made riffles.

Three policemen were mar­tyred while five terrorists were killed in the attack. The weap­ons recovered from the mili­tants included AK-47, HE gre­nade and MI 16/A2 guns.

The easy flow of these weap­ons into the hands of TTP mil­itants raises a big question mark on the claim of IEA of Af­ghan government of not allow­ing its soil to be used for mili­tancy against Pakistan.

Pakistan at official diplomat­ic level has taken up the mat­ter with Afghan authorities and shared all details of these weapons but the Afghan side as usual didn’t give proper an­swer to these facts.
https://www.nation.com.pk/E-Paper/lahore/2023-12-18/page-1/detail-3