New Delhi: A report by the US Congressional Research Service has reinforced India’s longstanding concerns over militant groups operating from Pakistan, particularly those focused on Jammu and Kashmir.
The report according to news agency Kashmir Dot Com, identifies several India- and Kashmir-oriented groups—including Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Harakat-ul Jihad Islami, Harakat ul-Mujahidin and Hizbul Mujahideen—as continuing to operate from Pakistani territory, posing enduring security challenges.
According to the analysis, Pakistan remains both a hub and a target for a wide range of armed non-state actors, many of which have been active since the 1980s. Despite repeated military operations and policy measures, networks designated as terrorist organisations by the United States and the United Nations have not been fully dismantled.
The report, intended to brief US lawmakers and prepared by South Asia specialist K Alan Kronstadt, categorises these groups into five types: globally oriented, Afghanistan-focused, India- and Kashmir-oriented, domestically focused, and sectarian, particularly anti-Shia outfits. It notes that 12 of the 15 groups listed are designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations under US law, with most driven by Islamist extremist ideologies.
Among globally oriented groups, the report names Al Qaeda, Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent and Islamic State Khorasan Province, while Afghanistan-focused groups include the Taliban and the Haqqani Network. Domestically focused outfits include Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, Balochistan Liberation Army and Jaysh al-Adl, while sectarian groups include Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi.
The report notes that a 2014 National Action Plan aimed to ensure that no armed militias operate in the country, but adds that multiple large-scale military offensives, including airstrikes and intelligence-based operations, have failed to eliminate these groups.
“Several major military offensives, including airstrikes, and hundreds of thousands of ‘intelligence-based operations’ have failed to defeat the numerous U.S.- and United Nations-designated terrorist groups that continue to operate on Pakistani soil,” it said.
At the same time, the report notes that Pakistan itself has suffered heavily from terrorism since 2003 and is currently among the countries most impacted by militant violence.
