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KARACHI: Pakistan witnessed a sharp escalation in militant violence in August, with attacks reaching their highest monthly level in more than a decade, according to new data released on Monday by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS).

The Islamabad-based independent think tank that tracks militancy recorded 143 militant attacks last month, a 74 percent increase compared to July. 

“With 143 militant attacks recorded, August became the deadliest month in over a decade, surpassing all monthly figures since February 2014,” PICSS said in its monthly report.

The wave of violence killed 194 people, including 73 security forces personnel, 62 civilians, 58 militants, and one member of a pro-government peace committee. Another 231 people were injured. Militants also abducted at least 10 individuals.

Security forces launched nationwide operations in response, killing at least 100 militants and arresting 31 others, PICSS said. These operations also caused the deaths of three civilians and one soldier.

When combining militant violence with counter-operations, the overall toll for August rose to at least 298 people killed and 250 injured. Fatalities included 158 militants, 74 security forces personnel, 65 civilians, and one peace committee member. 

The think tank noted a 100 percent increase in security forces’ deaths and a 145 percent rise in injuries compared to July.

KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA

The northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), which borders Afghanistan, saw the most severe escalation, recording 51 militant attacks in its tribal districts, a 200 percent increase from July, that left 74 people dead and 99 wounded.

Mainland KP’s settled districts were also hit hard, with 55 attacks killing 56 people, including 26 security personnel and 22 civilians. Overall, the province witnessed 106 attacks in August, the highest monthly figure in more than 10 years, PICSS reported.

Security forces carried out operations in Bajaur and North Waziristan, districts that have long served as hubs for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella group of militant factions aligned with the Afghan Taliban. 

At least 48 militants were killed in KP during operations and retaliatory fire.

BALOCHISTAN, SINDH, PUNJAB, GB

The restive southwestern province of Balochistan saw 28 attacks in August that killed 52 people, including 23 security personnel and 21 civilians. Militants kidnapped at least five people, while security operations killed 50 fighters, the highest number in Balochistan since June 2015, when 60 militants were reported killed. Security officials said those targeted included members of separatist groups such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF).

In Sindh province, six attacks were recorded, leaving eight people dead. Security forces arrested 11 suspected militants, all in the port city of Karachi.

Punjab reported two attacks, including a TTP assault in Dera Ghazi Khan. Security forces killed two militants in Mianwali and arrested one Islamic State-linked suspect in Okara.

In Gilgit-Baltistan, a remote northern region bordering China, militants linked to the TTP struck Chilas district, killing two soldiers and injuring one.

PICSS also noted that Pakistan’s federal capital, Islamabad, was spared a major attack in August after the civilian Intelligence Bureau arrested a would-be suicide bomber and his handler. The group said the plot was linked to the TTP.

Militant violence in Pakistan has surged since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021, which Islamabad says emboldened cross-border groups such as the TTP. The Taliban government in Afghanistan denies it supports the TTP or allows it safe havens. 

JHANG, Pakistan: Emergency workers in Pakistan’s Punjab province used drones to find people stranded on rooftops by massive floods as the government expanded what it called its largest rescue operation, with more than 700,000 evacuated, officials said Monday.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department warned of more heavy rain in Punjab’s flood-hit districts and elsewhere in the country, where weeks of above-normal rainfall and the release of huge volumes of water from dams in neighboring India last week caused rivers to overflow into low-lying regions.

In Multan and Jhang districts, residents on Monday waded through floodwaters carrying their belongings to roadsides and higher ground. They said they had waited for rescuers before crossing on their own nearly 5-foot (1 1/2-meter) -deep water to reach safety, while many others remained stranded.

Since last week, rescuers, backed by the military and emergency services, have evacuated more than 700,000 people, said Irfan Ali Kathia, director general of the Punjab Disaster Management Authority. More than 500,000 farm animals were also moved to safety, he said.

“We are handling an unprecedented situation, and we are responding to the country’s biggest-ever floods by using the latest technology and all available resources to save lives,” Kathia told The Associated Press. The Punjab government said drones were deployed this week in Multan, Jhang and other districts.

“Our priority is to save lives and ensure a steady supply of essential items to survivors,” Kathia said. 

The deluge has swamped Narowal, Sialkot and Kasur districts while entire villages have been submerged in Jhang and Multan.

‘Everything is gone’

On dusty roadside embankments, displaced families complained of being abandoned.

“We have been destroyed. Everything is gone in the flood,” said Haleema Bibi, 54, who fled her damaged home in Jhang with seven relatives. They now shelter under the open sky without tents or food.

“Whatever we had to eat has nearly finished. You can see how miserably we are living,” she told The Associated Press.

Allah Ditta, a farmer from the same district, said he and his neighbors slept on plastic sheets and carts. “Rescuers came once by boat, but no one has brought us supplies. We keep looking to the road, hoping someone will come with help,” he said.

Authorities in Punjab say they had set up more than 1,000 relief camps, but government figures show that only about 36,550 of over 800,000 evacuees are housed in them. It is unclear where the vast majority were staying.

Evacuations also took place in southern Sindh province, where Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah warned of a possible “super flood” of the Indus River if water levels top 900,000 cubic feet per second.

Officials blame the catastrophic flooding on weeks of heavier-than-normal monsoon rains, compounded by cross-border waters released from India’s swollen rivers and dams last week. The Ravi, Chenab and Sutlej rivers rose simultaneously, inundating wide swaths of farmland and villages.

India had alerted Pakistan about the water release, marking the rivals’ first public diplomatic contact since a military crisis brought them to the brink of war in May.

Punjab, home to some 150 million people and the country’s main wheat-growing region, has recorded 33 flood-related deaths in 10 days — far fewer than the catastrophic 2022 floods — but damage is widespread.

Pakistan’s weather center said Punjab received 26.5 percent more monsoon rainfall between July 1 and Aug. 27 compared with the same period last year. Nationwide, at least 854 people have died in rain-related incidents since late June.

Pakistan’s monsoon season typically lasts until the end of September.