By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan recorded a second consecutive month of markedly improved security conditions in April, with verified militant attacks falling by more than 40 percent and combat-related deaths declining sharply, according to a detailed report released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies.
The Islamabad-based think tank documented 85 militant attacks across the country last month, down from 146 in March — a 42 percent decrease. Fatalities directly attributed to those attacks fell from 106 to 60, extending a downward trend that first appeared in March, when overall combat deaths dropped 35 percent.
The gains followed Pakistan’s cross-border military operation, launched Feb. 26 after unprovoked firing by Afghan Taliban fighters from across the border. The campaign, codenamed Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, targeted militant groups and Taliban positions and ran until March 18, when it was suspended ahead of talks in Urumqi, China. Total combat-related deaths in April — encompassing casualties from both militant attacks and Pakistani security operations — stood at 291, the report said.
Militants accounted for 224 of those fatalities, or 77 percent. The remaining deaths included 28 members of the security forces, 37 civilians and two members of pro-government peace committees. Security-force losses fell particularly sharply, from 59 in March to 28 in April, a 53 percent reduction. Civilian fatalities remained nearly unchanged, with 37 deaths recorded compared with 39 the previous month. Injuries also declined overall, from 210 in March to 131 in April, a 38 percent drop. Civilian injuries fell from 98 to 54, while militants sustained 31 injuries, down from 57. Security personnel injuries edged down slightly, from 48 to 46. No injuries were reported among peace committee members.
Most of the 85 attacks were low-intensity incidents, though several stood out. They included two suicide bombings in Bannu district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and a high-profile assault on a mining facility in Chagai district, Balochistan, that was linked to 10 of the month’s deaths in that province. Despite the reduction in attacks, Pakistani security forces maintained aggressive operations, killing 224 militants in April — nearly the same number as the 228 killed in March. Over the first four months of 2026, the military has killed 988 militants nationwide, the report said.
Regionally, the patterns varied. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continued to record the highest number of attacks, but the province showed clear improvement in its former tribal districts. There, militant strikes dropped 40 percent, from 35 in March to 21 in April, while deaths from those attacks plunged 82 percent, to just six. Security forces responded with intensified operations in the tribal areas, killing 120 militants — more than half the national total for April and a sharp increase from the 24 killed there in March. In mainland Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, attacks declined modestly from 51 to 45, while fatalities held steady at 34.
Balochistan also posted significant gains. Militant attacks there fell 69 percent, from 59 in March to 18 in April. Those strikes caused 17 deaths, including the 10 from the Chagai mining facility assault. Security forces killed 66 militants in the province, down from 145 the previous month.
A single isolated attack in Gilgit-Baltistan’s Chilas district killed three police officers. No militant attacks occurred in Punjab, Sindh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir or the federal capital of Islamabad. Intelligence-based operations in those areas led to the arrest of eight suspects — five in Sindh, two in Punjab and one in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Over the first four months of 2026, the PICSS recorded 401 militant attacks nationwide. Those incidents killed 190 civilians, 158 security personnel and seven peace committee members. Injuries totaled 469 civilians, 167 security personnel and seven peace committee members. During the same period, security forces killed 988 militants and arrested 121 suspects. The April figures mark the most sustained improvement in Pakistan’s security indicators since at least the start of the year, though analysts caution that the underlying militant networks remain active and that cross-border dynamics with Afghanistan continue to shape the threat environment.
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