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KABUL – Pakistan is witnessing one of its most volatile weeks in years, as violent unrest, militant attacks, and political turmoil collide across multiple fronts — exposing the fragility of its internal security and hybrid governance.
A powerful blast in Quetta on September 30 targeting a Frontier Constabulary compound killed at least 10 people and wounded dozens, followed by an armed assault that bore hallmarks of Baloch separatist tactics. The attack, coming weeks after a suicide bombing outside a nationalist rally in the same city, has reignited fears over insurgency and Chinese-linked projects in Balochistan.
Meanwhile, the hardline Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) has mobilized thousands in a pro-Palestine “Labbaik Ya Aqsa” march from Lahore toward Islamabad, clashing with police who fired tear gas and imposed sweeping internet shutdowns. Human rights groups condemned the state’s crackdown as excessive and emblematic of shrinking civic space.
In the country’s northwest, the Pakistan Army launched heavy retaliatory operations in Orakzai after 11 soldiers, including senior officers, were killed in clashes with Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants. The military claims to have neutralized 30 insurgents and over 200 Afghan fighters in subsequent cross-border engagements — a claim yet to be independently verified amid rising tensions with Kabul.
The unrest extends beyond the mainland. In Azad Jammu & Kashmir, a week-long shutter-down strike paralyzed the region, with protesters demanding cheaper power and an end to elite privileges. At least one person was killed and dozens injured as authorities cut internet and mobile services.
The turmoil unfolds as Pakistan’s economy teeters, with the World Bank projecting poverty to rise above 25%, driven by inflation, unemployment, and repeated crises. Political rifts deepen further as Imran Khan, from behind bars, reshuffles provincial leadership, signaling defiance against both the military and civilian establishment.
As regional alliances shift — India warming to the Taliban even as Pakistan trades border fire with Kabul — Islamabad finds itself increasingly isolated. What unites the chaos is a growing sense that Pakistan’s multiple crises, long managed through force and narrative control, are converging into a single moment of reckoning.
Pakistan’s challenge is no longer just about militancy or politics — it’s about survival of state coherence amid collapsing trust, widening economic pain, and the erosion of public patience.
