The Western border of Pakistan has become one of the busiest battlegrounds in the war against terrorism in the region. For years, Pakistan has been claiming that the terrorist groups strike inside Pakistan territory before crossing into Afghanistan where they regroup, rearm and plan for further attacks. The gravity of the terrorist attacks in 2025 has revived the issue of security beyond the borders of Pakistan.
A Sharp Rise in Violence
The statistics represent the extent of the danger. According to the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2025, Pakistan experienced the deadliest year of its history in terms of terrorism in more than 13 years. There were more than 1000 (2024: 517, 2023: 1099) terrorist incidents, an increase of over 1,000 cases, and more than 45 per cent of the number of terror-related deaths (50 in 2024, 33 in 2023) Independent monitoring by Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) shows that the situation was extremely volatile in 2025 with 699 terrorist attacks reported across the country, marking another 34 percent rise from 2024.
Most of this violence has been blamed on the Fitna al Khawarij, who have been Pakistan’s most active terrorist organization. The group has been responsible for over 67 per cent of all the terrorist attacks in Pakistan since 2009, and almost five times as many attacks as the second strongest terrorist group, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). The fight against fitna al Khawarij grew by another 24 percent in 2025, with most of these activities taking place in KP, especially adjacent to Afghanistan, highlighting the ongoing threat of cross-border terrorist networks.
According to the security monitoring data, so far at least 625 security personnel have laid down their lives in the defense of the country against terrorism in 2025 along with 459 civilians. During the year, the Pakistani security forces also stepped up intelligence-based operations and border security measures, destroying over 2,000 terrorists. More than 60 per cent of all the terrorist incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were in the frontier districts of North Waziristan, Bannu, Khyber, Bajaur and Lakki Marwat. These stats highlight the fact that Pakistan is one of the top ground states of terrorism in the world with a tremendous drain on human, economic and security costs, while maintaining continuous counterterror operations to ensure both the stability and security of the state and the region.
The Afghan Safe Haven Problem
The security situation in Pakistan has deteriorated significantly since the change of the government in Afghanistan in August 2021. Pakistani authorities believe that the changed security setting has enabled Fitna al Khawarij to exploit sanctuaries in neighbouring countries to regroup, recruit and beef up the terrorist activities against Pakistan. The continued presence and operational ability of the group in Afghanistan has been reported by successive reports by the United Nations Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team. Around 6,000 to 6,500 fighters are believed to be affiliated with Fitna al Khawarij, who have reportedly built up their infrastructure and capabilities for training, logistics and operations in Afghanistan.
The impact has been reflected on the battlefield. According to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) data, the conflict has increased significantly in violence over the past year, with Fitna al Khawarij having conducted some 600 attacks, armed clashes and security incidents involving Pakistani forces over the course of the year, compared to the number of incidents seen in the previous year. The Pakistani security agencies have always found that the overwhelming focus of these attacks is from the western border belt on the eastern side, specifically from the bordering areas of KP and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
This has also resulted in growing military tensions with Afghanistan due to the deteriorating security situation. In October of 2025, after a significant counterterrorism mission in Orakzai District, the relations became one of the most volatile in recent years between the two neighbouring countries. Pakistan reiterated its stance that the establishment of terrorist infrastructure in Afghanistan was an unacceptable threat to the country’s national security and emphasized the country’s right to protect its citizens from cross border terrorism. Later on, both sides suffered heavy casualties in the cross-border conflict, and agreed on a ceasefire of 48 hours on 15 October. In the clash, 23 Pakistan Army soldiers laid down their lives, and the Pakistani military suffered heavy casualties against the opposing forces, reports Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Islamabad has always requested the Afghan interim government to implement its commitments of the Doha agreement, especially that no Afghan territory would be used by any terrorist groups for threatening the security of the other countries. Pakistan has repeatedly emphasized that it is essential for peaceful regional stability that the terrorist sanctuaries are effectively dismantled, and safe havens for Fitna al Khawarij and other terrorist groups listed by the international community are denied. Rather, the cross-border terrorism remains one of the most formidable challenges to sustainable peace, border security and regional cooperation in general.
Building a Wall Against Infiltration
Pakistan has acted in return by implementing one of the biggest border security measures in the region. Islamabad has fenced over 98 percent of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and 91 percent of the Pakistan-Iran border and finished 92 percent of the planned fencing of border forts along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border since 2017. The project will seek to deter cross-border terrorist infiltration and enhance surveillance and regulate lawful movement. The deployment of major sections of the fence has reportedly borne fruit in the initial stages as cross-border terrorist attacks reduced from 82 in 2019 to 11 in 2020 according to official figures. Adding to these efforts, Pakistan has expatriated over 815,000 illegal Afghan nationals since September 2023, emphasizing on the importance of robust immigration laws and secure borders in depriving terrorists of the freedom of movement they have been abusing for years and enhancing the country’s overall national security.
The Road Ahead
Pakistan has started its counterterrorism efforts with unwavering military operations and intelligence-based actions. The armed forces have launched 22 major operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since 2001, and 14,658 intelligence-based operations in 2025 alone, official sources said. Islamabad, however, believes that “military measures and the fortification of the border” alone can’t eradicate cross-border terrorism. The Pakistani government has reiterated that its vision of enduring regional peace and stability can only be achieved if Afghan territory is not used by them to carry out, organize or plan acts of terror against Pakistan.
