London, October 27

Pakistan remains a breeding ground and supporter of global terrorism and is responsible for three times the terror risk to humanity that Syria poses, says a study. The report titled “Humanity at Risk — Global Terror Threat Indicant (GTTI)” was published by Oxford University and Strategic Foresight Group (SFG).

According to the GTTI, while the Afghan Taliban and the Lashkar-e-Taibba  pose the maximum threat to international security, Pakistan is placed on top of the list of countries with the highest number of terrorist bases and safe havens.

“If we look at the most dangerous terrorist groups, based on hard facts and statistics, we find that Pakistan hosts or aids majority of them. Also, there are a significant number of groups based in Afghanistan, which operate with the support of Pakistan,” the report says.

The report, which has been prepared to discuss the challenges for the next decade, presents an analytical framework and tool to enable policy makers to look into the future. “The rise of competitive extremism of all shades, misuse of weapons of mass destruction and economic disruptions can undermine human progress or even survival in the period from now until 2030. They are all interlinked with terrorism,” it said.

The SFG, which analysed 200 groups  involved in terror acts, said the factor influencing the future of terror groups would be the support they get from states, intelligence agencies and criminal networks. — Agencies