Data from the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies shows a reduction in terrorist attacks in Pakistan, attributed to the success of Operation Ghazab Lil Haq. The 27 June attack on Karachi’s Rangers headquarters and recent militant strikes in Balochistan highlight how external actors exploit Afghanistan to sustain unrest in Pakistan. These assaults followed Islamabad’s diplomatic gains, which unsettled India and Israel, as regional peace mediated by Pakistan did not suit their interests. The surge in terrorism reflects their joint effort to use Afghanistan as a conduit to weaken Pakistan.

On 27 June, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter of Fitna al-Khwarij, attacked Karachi’s Rangers headquarters with a car bomb and gunfire, killing three security personnel before three attackers were shot dead and an Afghan national was captured. Fitna al-Khwarij also struck Balochistan on 5 July near Quetta, on 6 July at a Ziarat police post, and on 8 July against an army convoy in Bela, leaving 42 dead in all three incidents.

The Rangers headquarters attack showed hostility towards a force that dismantled militant networks in Karachi, while unrest in Balochistan serves external interests by curtailing Pakistan’s influence and tying down its security forces. These attacks can also be dubbed failed economic warfare, particularly as the 27 June attack aimed to undermine Karachi’s rising........

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