Wednesday, April 30, 2025 by Indian Defence News

Pakistan’s role as a sponsor, shelter, and exporter of terrorism has repeatedly come under global scrutiny, most recently following the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. For decades, Pakistan’s territory has served as a launchpad for cross-border terrorism, insurgency, and the spread of extremist ideology, destabilizing not only South Asia but also regions far beyond its borders.

Admissions And Evidence of State Sponsorship

Multiple senior Pakistani officials have openly acknowledged the state’s involvement in supporting terrorist groups. In 2018, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif suggested that the Pakistani government played a role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which were orchestrated by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a Pakistan-based Islamist terrorist group.

General Pervez Musharraf, who led Pakistan after a 1999 coup, admitted that his forces trained militant groups to fight India in Kashmir, turning a blind eye to their activities as a strategic ploy to pressure India into negotiations and internationalise the Kashmir issue. Most recently, Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif candidly admitted that Pakistan had funded and supported terrorist groups for decades, often at the behest of the United States and Western powers.

The ISI And The Global Terror Network

Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency is widely documented as the architect behind the country’s terror infrastructure.

The ISI has provided funding, training, and safe havens to the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani Network, enabling deadly attacks such as the 2008 Indian Embassy bombing and the 2011 assault on the US Embassy in Kabul. Senior journalists and analysts have highlighted that such operations were sanctioned at the highest levels of Pakistani intelligence, not merely the work of rogue agents.

Pakistan’s Terror Trail Extends Well Beyond Its Immediate neighbours:

Afghanistan: The Taliban and Haqqani Network, with ISI support, have orchestrated numerous attacks on Afghan civilians, government targets, and international forces.

Russia: In April 2025, investigations into the Moscow concert hall attack uncovered possible logistical or ideological links to Pakistani networks, highlighting the global reach of Pakistan-based terror groups.

Iran: Pakistan-based Sunni extremist group Jaish ul-Adl has repeatedly attacked Iranian security forces. In retaliation, Iran conducted missile and drone strikes inside Pakistan in January 2024, targeting Jaish ul-Adl hideouts. Iran has consistently accused Pakistan of harboring Sunni militants responsible for cross-border attacks.

United Kingdom: The 2005 London bombings were linked to indoctrination and training received in Pakistan, with three of the bombers spending significant time in the country prior to the attack.

Bangladesh: Pakistan’s ISI has been accused of funding and training Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), responsible for the 2016 Dhaka café attack. Bangladeshi authorities have expelled Pakistani diplomats for direct involvement in transferring funds to JMB operatives.

Terror Training Infrastructure

Pakistan hosts a network of terror training camps across Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Waziristan, and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. These camps, operated by groups such as LeT, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Hizbul Mujahideen, and ISIS-Khorasan, serve as hubs for radicalization, weapons training, and suicide mission preparation. Ex-Pakistani Army personnel often assist in training, lending military expertise to enhance operational lethality.

The US State Department has repeatedly identified Pakistan as a country that continues to serve as a safe haven for regionally focused terrorist groups. The European Foundation for South Asian Studies has highlighted the deeply entrenched relationship between Pakistan’s military establishment, the ISI, and radical religious leaders, creating an “unholy alliance” that perpetuates terrorism.

High-Profile Cases And Systemic Failures

The 2011 US raid that killed Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad, just a short distance from Pakistan’s Military Academy, exposed systemic failures in Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts and raised suspicions of ISI collusion. Pakistani leaders have also admitted that figures like bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri were once considered “heroes” during the Soviet-Afghan war, only later becoming liabilities.

Conclusion

Pakistan’s track record in sponsoring, sheltering, and exporting terrorism is long-standing, well-documented, and deeply entrenched in its military-intelligence apparatus. Its terror trail extends from Kashmir to Kabul, Tehran to London, and even Moscow, making it one of the most dangerous and destabilizing forces in the global fight against terrorism. Despite international pressure and periodic denials, Pakistan’s complicity in fostering terrorism remains a grave concern for regional and global security.