Pakistan's Resolve Against Terrorism Unshaken Despite Recent Attacks, Dar Vows

​Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar affirmed on Wednesday that heinous acts of terrorism would never weaken Pakistan’s determination to confront this menace.

​Dar made these remarks while addressing the two-day Inter-Parliamentary Speakers’ Conference in Islamabad. He specifically referenced the recent suicide blast in the federal capital and the attack on the Cadet College in Wana.

​“Let me be very clear — these cowardly acts will never shake or weaken our national resolve to deal with this menace [terrorism],” Dar stated. He asserted that, if anything, these attacks "reaffirm our conviction that dialogue, understanding and partnership are the only sustainable path of peace and security."

​The Minister highlighted that the nation had witnessed "two heinous acts of terrorism in Wana and Islamabad in the last 48 hours, resulting in the loss of 15 precious lives." He condemned the attacks, extended sympathies to the victims’ families, and categorically rejected terrorism "in all forms and manifestations, whether these take place in Islamabad or anywhere in the world.”

​Dar stressed that terrorism remains “one of the major global challenges of our time,” noting that “Pakistan has been a bulwark against this menace that does not recognise any boundary or religion, gender, ethnicity or race.”

​The suicide blast in Islamabad was the first in the capital in nearly three years and occurred amidst several international events, including the Inter-Parliamentary Speakers’ Conference and the 6th Margalla Dialogue. A tri-nation cricket series featuring Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Zimbabwe was also ongoing, with a match played in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.

​Police reported that the attacker in the G-11 sector complex, where hundreds of litigants and lawyers were present, was a lone bomber who blew himself up at the main entrance after repeated failed attempts to enter the premises. Officials confirmed the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the suicide attack. Meanwhile, security sources confirmed on Wednesday that all the khawarij involved in the attack on Cadet College in Wana had been killed.  

​Pakistan has experienced an uptick in terror activities over the past year, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan, following the TTP's termination of its ceasefire with the government in November 2022 and its subsequent pledge to target security forces, police, and law enforcement agencies' personnel.