No Room for Talks with Terrorists; They Must Surrender or Face Elimination: DG ISPR

Islamabad: Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, stated that there is no room for negotiations with terrorists, stressing that they must either surrender before the state in accordance with the law or be eliminated through security operations.

Addressing a press conference, the DG ISPR said terrorists now understand that the state will show no leniency. He emphasized that security forces will continue operations until all terrorist threats are neutralized.

Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said that certain elements are deliberately trying to create the impression that the security situation in Balochistan is deteriorating. According to him, hostile forces shifted their focus toward Balochistan after failing to achieve their objectives in what he described as the “Battle for Truth.”

He further claimed that several individuals previously reported as missing were later found to have been involved in terrorist activities in Mastung, Khuzdar, and other areas. He alleged that many militants killed during security operations had earlier appeared on lists of missing persons. He also questioned the alleged links between Afghanistan, India, and the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA).

The DG ISPR said that figures regarding missing persons are often exaggerated, with claims ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 cases, and argued that what he described as propaganda on the issue has failed.

Counter-Terrorism Operations

Providing details of security operations, Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said that over the past five years, Pakistani security forces conducted a total of 40,348 intelligence-based operations (IBOs), during which 2,084 terrorists were killed.

He stated that 31,080 operations were carried out in Balochistan, 7,177 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and 2,091 in other parts of Pakistan. He added that Balochistan witnessed 178 security personnel martyred, 55 kidnappings, 24 bridges destroyed, and 105 attacks targeting police and Levies forces.

The DG ISPR further said that 303 soldiers and 322 civilians have been killed in the country’s fight against terrorism so far this year.

He also stated that 28 bombing incidents have occurred in 2026, alleging that Afghan nationals were involved in many of them, including attacks in Tank and Karachi. He accused the Afghan Taliban administration of allowing terrorism to function as a business.