G-B: Diamer jirga announces complete social boycott of militants

GILGIT: Amid a surge in militant activity and rising public concern over deteriorating law and order in Diamer district, elders, youth, and religious leaders from the Thore area of Chilas in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) have urged the government and security institutions to take “targeted action against militants”.

The demand came at a jirga held in Tablighi Markaz in Thore on Monday, where participants unanimously declared a complete dissociation from so-called “mujahideen” and self-styled commanders operating in the area. The jirga also announced a social boycott of such individuals who, according to them, pose a serious threat to the peace and stability of the region.

Also read: Five martyred as army aviation copter crashes in G-B: ISPR

They emphasised that these elements do not represent the people of Thore and called upon the authorities to take firm action to restore public confidence.

The jirga also urged the government to ensure that innocent civilians are not harassed under the pretext of security operations. They said that any crackdown must be based on credible intelligence and must not target the general population.

The development comes after the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for an attack on a Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) Scouts check post in the Hudur area of Chilas. Two soldiers of the G-B Scouts were martyred and another was injured on Thursday night when terrorists attacked the security forces’ check post.

“100% of the people of Thore have announced a complete boycott of self-claimed mujahideen and commanders. From today, they will not be facilitated financially nor given any hideout; instead, they will be told to leave the Thore area,” Molana Sadiq said while announcing the decisions made during the jirga.
He said that the people of Thore have condemned and will condemn the recent terrorist incident.

“We request the government that whoever carried out the recent terrorist attack—whether they are ‘mujahideen’ from Thore or any other elements—should be brought to justice after a thorough probe. The people of Thore will support the government in it,” he said, warning the government of consequences if innocent civilians are harassed instead of the culprits.

“Don’t make Thore another Wana. Don’t try to make Thore a second Balochistan; it will be difficult for you to handle the situation. If peace-loving and patriotic citizens are harassed in the name of an operation and if the sanctity of homes and privacy is violated, the government should not complain when all people are against it,” he added.

He said that they do not want such a situation to arise and that the government should conduct a targeted operation, which they would support.

The Molana, suspecting a link between the G-B Scouts check post attack and the Naran police mobile van attack, also demanded a thorough investigation into whether it was orchestrated from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa or from Diamer.

“The government of Pakistan and the Pakistan army were given the names of people involved in the Hundur bus attack [last December], but they didn’t pursue them, which led to the attack on FC personnel. That was also left unattended, which led to this incident,” he added, asserting that this was a weakness of the government and state institutions that, despite having knowledge about the culprits, they are not being pursued. He requested, on behalf of all the people of Thore, that the culprits should be brought to justice.

Also read: TTP claims attack on Diamer checkpoint in Gilgit-Baltistan

It is worth mentioning here that G-B Chief Minister Gulbar Khan has also acknowledged the presence of such militants in Diamer.

“In our Diamer, some boys were – and still are – present under the label of ‘Commanders’. Previously, a few people supported them unwillingly, but now 95 per cent people are condemning them,” Gulbar Khan said in a recent interview with a local social media channel.