Jaish Muhammad and Junod Hafsa Presence Sparks Worries Along Kunar-Chitral Line

Kunar, Feb 12 (Kubha News)- Amid escalating attacks by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), accompanins by a robust response from the Pakistani army and government, reports indicate that Jaish Mohammad fighters and Junod-e-Hafsa have been strategically stationed along the Chitral border with Kunar.

Chitral has emerged as a focal point for former supporters and splinter groups of the TTP seeking infiltration along the supposed Durand Line. The region’s non-Pashtun population provides cover for these groups, allowing them access to routes leading to Badakhshan, Nuristan, and Kunar provinces.
In September 2023, the Pakistani Taliban, led by Maulvi Azmatullah Mehsud, targeted security posts in Kalash and Chitral near the Durand Line, resulting in the loss of four Pakistani soldiers and the destruction of two security posts.

These attacks have sparked concerns among the residents of Chitral regarding the security and future of the region.
The border mountains of Chitral, once instrumental in supporting the Mujahideen wars and the communist regime of Afghanistan through tunnels and training centers utilized by Hizb-e-Islami under Golbedin Hekmatyar’s leadership, are now a cause for concern as these strategic facilities have fallen under the control of unidentified militants.

A top Ismaili community member in Chitral informed Kubha News that until recently, local traders would store pine nuts in these tunnels; however, in mid-2023, the Pakistan Army evacuated the former training centers. He explained, “Historically, local residents and shepherds would graze their herds in these mountainous areas and gather acorns, but following last year’s Pakistani Taliban attacks, the army imposed restrictions, prohibiting local access to these regions and grazing their herds.”

A journalist from Chitral, who prefers to remain anonymous, informed Kubha News that militants from Junod-e-Hafsa, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and Lashkar-e-Taiba (Jamaat-ud-Dawa) have been observed in the mountainous regions. It is speculated that the TTP’s deadly attack last year might have been in retaliation against these groups.

In October 2022, the resurgence of militant activities in Chitral and Kalash coincided with the release of Colonel Abaid Ullah Baig, a high-ranking official and retired officer of the Pakistan Army. He was released in exchange for commander Habib Rehman, the former deputy of the Taliban in Gilgit-Baltistan, who subsequently resumed activities in Diamer, Chitral, and Kalash.

Junod-e-Hafsa, led by Maulana Asmatullah Muawiya, formerly known as the Punjabi Taliban in TTP, has become active in Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan. After surrendering to the Pakistani army during the Zarb-e-Azb operation and settling in Peshawar, Muawiya is reportedly recruiting members for IS-KP.

Chitral, framed by the towering peaks of the Hindu Kush, features a shared border with Afghanistan’s Nuristan, Kunar, and Badakhshan provinces, with the narrow Pamir peak of Badkhshan acting as a natural divide, separating these regions from China and Tajikistan.