Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Tuesday strongly objected to the use of the term 'militants' to describe those responsible for attacks on civilians, asserting that 'terrorists are terrorists' and should not be referred to by any other name. In a post on X, Tarar stated, 'Terrorists are terrorists, they have no caste, colour, creed or religion.' He noted a troubling trend of calling these terrorists 'militants', which he described as 'extremely unfortunate' and emphasized that the terminology used to describe such attacks matters.
Criticism of TRT World Report
Tarar specifically criticized a report by Turkish public broadcaster TRT World on the recent terrorist attack on a Rangers facility in Karachi, where three security personnel were killed. He accused the broadcaster of describing the attackers as 'militants' instead of 'terrorists'. 'The Karachi attack was a terrorist attack, in which innocent people were killed,' Tarar said, adding that 'terrorists must not be called by any other name.'
Details of the Karachi Attack
Tarar's comments come days after security forces foiled a terrorist attack in Karachi, resulting in the martyrdom of three Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) personnel and injuries to four others. According to the military's media wing, the attack was launched by 'Khawarij belonging to Indian proxy, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar'. The assailants used a blast at the main gate of the Rangers camp to attempt a breach, but personnel pushed them back, killing three Kharjis and capturing one, identified as an Afghan national, in an injured condition. Fitna al-Khawarij is the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar is one of the group's breakaway factions.
Diplomatic Response
On Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) summoned the Afghan chargé d’affaires and issued a strong demarche over the attack. The demarche 'was issued in light of the fact that Afghan nationals, including one apprehended alive, participated in this attack, proving yet again that Afghan soil and Afghan nationals continue to be used to orchestrate terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.'
Cross-Border Strikes
Earlier, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said security forces had carried out precision strikes on terrorist camps and safe havens of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and Fitna al-Khawarij in Afghanistan’s Paktia, Paktika and Kunar provinces, killing 29 terrorists. The strikes were conducted under Operation Ghazab Lil Haq on the night of June 28-29 after the attack on the Rangers camp in Karachi. Fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan started in October, killing scores on both sides, with Afghans taking the brunt. Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of harbouring terrorists who launch attacks in Pakistan, although Kabul denies this, calling the militancy Islamabad's domestic problem.
