There is a menacing and calculated Khawarij terrorism wave in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Khawarij methodical attacks on members of the Peace Committee, the same group of people conducting volunteer activities at the grassroots in efforts to restore peace, reconcile, and stability. Such a turn in targeting is neither incidental nor random but a calculated move by Fitnah-al-Khawarij (FAK) to disrupt the local opposition to extremism and undermine Pakistan internally.

The recent kidnapping of five members of the Peace Committee in Takht Khail Lakki Marwat, and the subsequent violent campaign of threats on social media, implying violence around the country, is an indication that their psychological war is at a different stage. The mission is also quite explicit: to make people afraid, mute those who speak in moderation, and discourage the communities that promote peace. This strategy has been supported with a row of organised assaults throughout the province. Peace Committee member Malik Sabeel Khan came very close to being killed in a bomb attack in the Domel area of Bannu. In North Waziristan, terrorists killed a respected tribal elder, Malik Rakheem. Peace Committee leader Malik Shiroz Khan was targeted in the Khojri district of Bajaur, and an IED blast injured Peace Committee leader Kadim Khan and burnt his car in the Sarwakai tehsil of South Waziristan.

These acts are not separate instances of violence but a logical and long-term campaign against community-based peace arrangements. Peace committees enable the prevention of radicalization, the settlement of conflicts, and depriving terrorists of the social domain. The Khawarij are literally hitting at the core of the internal stability and the grassroots governance in Pakistan by attacking them.

The reason why this strategy was conceived is all about fear. The Khawarij realize that their ideology is not able to stand the test, both socially and locally. As such, they wish to get rid of individuals who work to establish order. This is an attempt to find governance gaps, resurrect fear, and reclaim dominion over communities that have severely declined in the use of extremist violence.

FAK is also unfriendly to the constitutional and social structure of Pakistan, as its activities show. Peace committees are also in accordance with the writ of the state and the general will of the local people. The attack against them is, in effect, an attack on the constitutional order in Pakistan, the local government systems, and the rule of law. Fear, through kidnappings, bombings, and target assassinations, is still the main weapon of the Khawarij, which is based on coercion and not legitimacy.

Of particular concern is the purposeful attack on the older generation and the larger terrorism caused to families, women, and children by the attacks. This kind of violence aims at breaking social bonds, rupturing trust at community levels, and undermining the structure and tradition that allow collective responsibility. It is not a war; it is inhuman brutality to destroy the moral and social spine of society.

The Khawarij violence is completely put to the test in terms of moral and religious perspective. Islam is categorical in its directive of protecting the innocent life, honor covenants, and maintenance of social order. The harassment of peace workers, elders, and civilians is the direct opposite of these values. The efforts by the Khawarij to mask their activities in the guise of religionare false and fraudulent, since they are used to exploit the weak in seeking power by creating havoc. Opposing the Khawarij ideology is not only a matter of security need, but it is also a patriotic obligation and a religious requirement. 

The present wave of targeting and assassination of peace committee members should be seen as an indication of Khawarij’s desperation, and not strength. Their growing dependence on intimidation indicates a declining ideological arena and a rise in being disapproved of by society.

Khawarij terrorism has to be defeated to protect the future of Pakistan. It is the maintenance of social peace, the preservation of the community leaders, and society has no voices of peace being suppressed by the impact of violence. The peace committees are defending, in short, the stability, the very unity, and the moral base of Pakistan tomorrow.

© Eurasia Review