Will Wagah strike make Pakistan review policyIJ
The suicide bombing at the Wagah border post is a grisly reminder of how terrorism hits back at those who covertly or directly promote it. For decades, the Pakistani establishment, including the political class and the military, has nurtured and nourished violent non-state actors to push its foreign and strategic policy goals. This is especially true of Pakistan's relations vis-à-vis India (wherein groups such as the lashkar-e-Tayyeba and the Jaish-e-Mohammed have been cultivated) and also of its relations vis-à-vis Afghanistan (the Afghan Taliban is a Pakistani product). Now, these groups have transmogrified and come back to bite Pakistan in the back. An assortment of fidayeens, jihadis and suicide bombers hold sway not just in the lawless tribal regions of the country but also in the settled areas. Terror attacks have become a routine affair in the major cities of lahore and Karachi; even Islamabad, which is a veritable fortress, has not been spared. Yet, the Pakistani establishment shows no signs of changing its course. Instead, it plays up the high Pakistani body count to gain sympathy at international forums. When the establishment is ticked off for allowing the country to turn into a global terror hub, its apologists promptly bring out their ‘victims of terror' tag, hoping to whitewash reality. A version of this victim narrative was also in play after Sunday's attack when some tried to equate the terror threats faced by India and Pakistan. While the loss of innocent lives anywhere in the world is tragic and condemnable, the fact of the matter remains that terrorism is a foreign export for India while it is almost entirely homegrown in the case of Pakistan.
Proof of this lies in the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan which aims to overthrow the Pakistani Government and establish asharia'h state. The group, which routinely targets Government installations and military assets, has accepted responsibility for Sunday's attack, although there is a rival claim from a splinter group. The Pakistani Taliban has reportedly said that the attack was in retaliation to the military's Zarb-e-Azb operation, which aims to flush out militants from the country's tribal areas. The effectiveness of the campaign remains unclear, with many insisting that it has only hurt civilians — hundreds have been killed and thousands displaced in these regions. Nevertheless, in recent weeks, the Pakistani military has ramped up its efforts, and retaliatory violence was only to be expected. In fact, both the Pakistani and Indian sides were expecting such an attack.
On the Pakistani side, the attack has claimed more than 60 lives and scores more have been injured. On the Indian side, there are no casualties, thankfully — but that's just a rare case of good luck. The terrorist struck right outside the border post, about half an hour after the flag-lowering ceremony drew to a close. The Pakistanis were still making their way out to the parking lot; hence, they found themselves in the line of fire. On the Indian side, much of the audience had already moved out of the visitors' gallery by the time of the attack and, therefore, was unharmed. However, had only the bomb been detonated a couple of minutes earlier, the safety of Indians would also have been jeopardised — if not from flying shrapnel, then from the possibility of a consequent stampede.