The report noted that despite the 2014 National Action Plan calling for the disbandment of all armed militias, 15 major groups continued to operate in five broad categories – global, Afghan, India and Kashmir, domestic, and sectarian.
Twelve of these 15 organizations are designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) under U.S. law, most of them inspired by extremist ideologies. The report highlights the fundamental failure to dismantle these networks and notes that U.S. and United Nations-designated terrorist groups continue to operate openly on Pakistani soil. Special emphasis is placed on India-centric groups such as Mujahideen and Jaish-e-Mohammed, which have active cadres of 1,500 and 500 armed supporters respectively.
Regionally, Pakistan remains a base for India-oriented groups such as
Lashkar-e-Taiba (responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks), Jaish and Hizbul, seek to annex Kashmir.
While Islamabad accuses India of backing militants in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, which India denies, U.S. officials have linked the Haqqani network, led by Afghan Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, to Pakistan’s own intelligence services. Although Pakistan was removed from the FATF “grey list” in 2022, Pakistan is still designated by the United States as a “country of particular concern” for religious freedom because some religious schools continue to teach teachings that may lead to greater acceptance of extremist ideologies. The report said the diversity of these groups, from the dormant anti-Shiite Sipah Sahaba group to the active QB and al Qaeda in the Indian subcontinent, illustrates the multi-layered security challenges that neither airstrikes nor diplomatic maneuvers can solve.
A surge in terrorism-related deaths, set to reach 4,001 by 2025, the highest level in 11 years, further underscores this reality. The TTP remains the deadliest domestic threat, seeking sharia law in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.