Pakistani Taliban

islamist militant organization operating along the Durand Line

Key facts

Also known as: Pakistani Taliban, Taliban Movement of Pakistan
Leaders: Baitullah Mehsud † , (2007–2009) Hakimullah Mehsud † , (2009–2013) Mullah Fazlullah † , (2013–2018) Noor Wali Mehsud , (2018–present)
Dates of operation: December 2007 – present
Allegiance: Afghanistan (self-declared, publicly rejected by IEA)
Group: Total groups: 60 Jamaat-ul-Ahrar TNSM Lashkar-e-Islam Tariq Gidar Group Harakat-e-Inqilab-e-Islami Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group Jaish-e-Fursan-e-Muhammad Naeem Bukhari group
Motives: Islamic fundamentalism , Pashtunwali , Deobandi jihadism , Sectarianism , Separatism
Headquarters: Eastern Afghanistan
Active regions: Northwest Pakistan ( Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ) Northern Balochistan Eastern/South eastern Afghanistan Southern Sindh ( Karachi ) Northern Punjab
Ideology: Deobandi jihadism , Islamic fundamentalism , Pashtunwali , Sectarianism , Separatism
Notable attacks: 2008 Barcelona terror plot , 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt , 2010 Sikh beheadings , kidnapping of Swiss tourists in Balochistan , 2014 Peshawar school massacre , attack on Malala Yousafzai , 2016 Lahore suicide bombing , Lahore church bombings , Dasu bus attack

Article

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), or simply the Pakistani Taliban, is a Deobandi jihadist militant organization that primarily operates along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border. It is designated as a terrorist organization by the United Nations and by the Government of Pakistan. Founded by Baitullah Mehsud in 2007, it has been led by Noor Wali Mehsud since 2018. The TTP has publicly pledged allegiance to and fought alongside the Taliban, which has governed Afghanistan since 2021, but it operates independently and does not share the Taliban's command structure. Like the Taliban, the TTP ascribes to Pashtunwali and a highly conservative interpretation of Sunni Islam.

In Pakistan, the TTP is particularly known for carrying out suicide bombings and other attacks against government targets, political opponents, and Pakistani civilians. The organization frequently engages in sectarian violence, especially against Shia Muslims and other non-Sunni minorities. Most Islamist organizations in Pakistan coalesce under the TTP. As a leading militant faction in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa insurgency, the TTP has claimed responsibility for several deadly attacks on the Pakistan Armed Forces, ultimately seeking to overthrow the Pakistani government and establish an Islamic state in line with the organization's Deobandi ideology. The TTP has also used Pashtun-centric narratives and often incited violence against non-Pashtun ethnicities, such as the Hazaras. The TTP depends on the tribal belt along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border, from which it draws its recruits. The TTP receives ideological guidance from and maintains ties with al-Qaeda. Some TTP members have also been affiliated with the Islamic State – Khorasan Province. In 2019, there were around 3,000 to 4,000 TTP militants in Afghanistan, according to a report by the United States Department of Defense. Between July and November 2020, the Amjad Farouqi group, one faction of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, the Musa Shaheed Karwan group, Mehsud factions of the TTP, Mohmand Taliban, Bajaur Taliban, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, and Hizb-ul-Ahrar merged with TTP. This reorganization made TTP more deadly and led to increased attacks.