Natiq Malikzada
Pakistan’s role as an incubator and launchpad for global jihad has come at a steep cost—but one that its military appears happy to pay.
Thursday, August 14, is Pakistan’s Independence Day, marking 78 years since the territory gained independence from the British Empire in 1947. In an odd coincidence, the following day is the fourth anniversary of the Taliban’s conquest of Afghanistan, with decisive support from Islamabad. On these two anniversaries, a sober assessment of Pakistan’s regional legacy is warranted.
Pakistan has long been accused of tolerating terrorist activity within its borders—undermining regional stability and nurturing global jihadist networks. For decades, Islamabad’s security establishment, particularly its politically untouchable military and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), has leveraged extremist proxies as a weapon against India and a tool for influence in Afghanistan. As part of this strategy, Islamabad has extended steady patronage, as well as a territorial safe haven, to a litany of jihadist terror groups—notably including the Taliban, but also anti-India organizations such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.
This strategy reaped enormous rewards in 2021, when the Taliban took advantage of America’s departure from Afghanistan to once again seize power. In the aftermath of the chaotic collapse of the internationally recognized Afghan government and the fall of Kabul, billions of dollars of advanced American weapons and equipment have seeped into militant black markets, and ultimately into the hands of terrorists across the region.
Pakistan’s Islamist Strategy
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