Militant attacks, casualties fell again in April, says PICSS

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan recorded a second straight month of improved security indicators in April 2026, with militant attacks and related casualties declining significantly, according to a report issued by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS).

The Islamabad-based think tank said it verified 85 militant attacks in April, compared to 146 in March, reflecting a 42 per cent drop. Fatalities caused by militant attacks also decreased from 106 in March to 60 in April, extending a downward trend that had begun a month earlier.

The report linked the improvement to Pakistan’s cross-border military campaign against militant groups and Taliban positions carried out between February 26 and March 18. The campaign ended with a suspension and later talks in Urumqi, China. Pakistan had launched Operation Ghazab lil-Haq on the night of February 26 after unprovoked firing by the Afghan Taliban from across the border.

According to PICSS, total combat-related deaths, including those resulting from militant attacks and security operations, stood at 291 in April. Of these, 224 were militants, accounting for 77pc of the total. The remaining deaths included 28 security personnel, 37 civilians and two members of pro-government peace committees.

Fatalities among security forces personnel fell sharply from 59 in March to 28 in April, a 53pc reduction. Civilian deaths remained largely unchanged, with 37 recorded in April against 39 in March.

Injuries also declined during the month. Overall injuries dropped from 210 in March to 131 in April, a 38pc decrease. Civilian injuries fell from 98 to 54, while militant injuries went down from 57 to 31. Injuries among security personnel edged down from 48 to 46, and no injuries were reported among pro-government peace committee members in April.

Regional breakdown

PICSS said most of the 85 attacks recorded in April were low-intensity incidents, though it noted a few major cases. These included two suicide attacks in Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and a major assault on a mining facility in Chagai district of Balochistan.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remained the most affected province, followed by Balochistan. In mainland KP, attacks declined from 51 in March to 45 in April, while fatalities remained unchanged at 34. The sharpest improvement came in the province’s tribal districts, where attacks fell by 40pc, from 35 to 21. Deaths from those attacks dropped to six, marking an 82pc decline.

At the same time, security operations intensified in the tribal districts, where 120 militants were killed in April, up from 24 in March. PICSS said this accounted for more than half of all militant deaths recorded nationwide during the month.

In Balochistan, militant attacks fell from 59 in March to 18 in April, a 69pc reduction. These incidents caused 17 deaths, including 10 associated with the attack on the mining facility in Chagai. Security forces killed 66 militants in the province in April, down from 145 in March.

Outside these regions, one attack in Chilas district of Gilgit-Baltistan killed three police personnel. PICSS said no militant attacks were reported in Punjab, Sindh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, or Islamabad in April. However, intelligence-based operations in those areas led to the arrest of eight suspects, including five in Sindh, two in Punjab and one in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Four-month tally

Security forces continued operations at a high level despite the decline in attacks. 224 militants were killed in April, compared with 228 in March. During the first four months of 2026, security forces killed 988 militants across the country.

Cumulatively, PICSS recorded 401 militant attacks nationwide from January to April 2026. Those attacks resulted in the deaths of 190 civilians, 158 security forces personnel and seven members of pro-government peace committees. During the same period, injuries included 469 civilians, 167 security personnel and seven peace committee members. Security forces arrested 121 suspects nationwide in the first four months of the year.