Remarkable improvement in security situation as militant attacks declined by 54% in Feb 2022: PICSS

ISLAMABAD, Mar 03 (SABAH): The number of militant attacks taking the edge off in the month of February as compared to the number of attacks in month of January, raising positive hopes but only time will tell that the improvement in the security situation is a statistical blip, or it will further improve in coming months.

According to statistics released by an Islamabad-based independent think tank, Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) the number of militant attacks decreased by 54 percent during the month of February and simultaneously the deaths and injuries rate also decreased by 60 percent and 38 percent as compared with January 2022.

In February, the militants had carried out 13 attacks in which 25 people were killed including 14 security forces personnel, one civilian and ten militants, and 30 people got injured including 21 security forces personnel and nine civilians. While militants had carried out 24 attacks across the country in the month of January 2022, in which 42 people were killed and 79 people got injured.

In February 2022, most of the attacks took place in Balochistan, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and erstwhile FATA (tribal districts of KP). PICSS has recorded five militant attacks in Balochistan in which 16 people were killed, including six security forces personnel, nine militants, and one civilian, while five people were injured, including two security forces personnel and three civilians. In KP, militants carried out four attacks in which six people were killed, including five security forces personnel and one militant, while 16 people got injured, of which six were civilian and ten were security forces personnel. In erstwhile FATA (Tribal districts of KP), four militant attacks were witnessed in which three security forces personnel were killed while nine people were injured, and all of them were security forces personnel. In Punjab and Sindh, no militant attack took place during the month.

Meanwhile, Pakistani security forces carried out 18 actions against militants in which six suspected militants were arrested and 48 militants were killed. The majority of arrests took place in the province of Balochistan.