In the wake of the Jaffar Express hijack incident, which was a huge embarrassment for the Pakistani establishment, and a rise in attacks on Pakistani security forces in both Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan has been trying to project itself as a victim of terrorist groups backed by the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. But the fact is that it is Pakistan’s deep state that has targeted Afghanistan, leading to the ‘payback’ from the latter.

On 28 February 2025, Pakistan witnessed a further demonstration of its ongoing struggle with terrorism, as a suicide bombing resulted in six fatalities and left 20 others injured. What sets this attack apart, however, is its location and the targeted individual, within the broader context of insurgent violence and Pakistan’s regional policy stance. The suicide bombing targeted Maulana Hamidul Haq, the Vice Chancellor and leader of Jamia Darul Uloom Haqqania, who was killed in the attack. The lack of an immediate claim of responsibility from any terrorist or sectarian group has prompted speculation about the potential involvement of Pakistan’s deep state. This becomes particularly significant in light of the growing rift between the Pakistani establishment and the Afghan Taliban.

However, why would such speculation regarding the possible involvement of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in this high-profile assassination arise in the first place? The conjecture is rooted in the long-standing and historically symbiotic relationship between Darul Uloom Haqqania and the jihadist networks that have supported Pakistan’s strategic depth doctrine since the 1980s. The ideological and operational links of the Haq family, particularly in nurturing terrorist networks, can be traced back to the Afghan jihad against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, during which Pakistan, under President General Zia-ul-Haq, took on the role of the principal architect of an anti-communist insurgency framed within the rhetoric of ‘jihad.’

Founded in 1974 by Maulana Abdul Haq in Akora Khattak, a town in Pakistan’s north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Darul Uloom Haqqania adheres to the Hanafi-Deobandi school of thought, which........

© News18