In a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict between the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Pakistan Army, reports indicate that TTP militants have kidnapped 16 Pakistani nuclear scientists in an effort to coerce Islamabad into meeting their demands.
The TTP, also known as the Pakistani Taliban, has released a video in which the kidnapped nuclear scientists, employed by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, are seen urgently appealing to the government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. In the footage, the scientists plead for their safety and call on the government to meet the terror group’s demands.
BIG ⚡️ Pak Taliban (TTP) has captured 18 engineers from Pakistan's Atomic Energy Commission in Dera Ismail Khan. Reportedly Uranium also seized.
Even Pak Nuclear Engineers are not Safe. High time Pak nuclear program is disbanded for the sake of humanity https://t.co/XXFbxmUBWk
— Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) January 9, 2025
In the video, which has since gone viral on social media, a group of individuals—reportedly engineers working at the Qabul Khel Atomic Energy mining project in Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismail Khan—are seen desperately urging the Pakistani government to ensure their safety by acceding to the TTP’s demands.
In a statement, the TTP asserted that they have “detained” the nuclear engineers not to harm them, but to exert pressure on Islamabad to meet their demands. These include halting the Pakistan Army’s military offensive against TTP fighters. Various reports indicate that TTP militants have also seized a significant quantity of uranium from Pakistan’s largest uranium mine.
Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have surged in recent weeks, particularly after Pakistan launched a series of airstrikes against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in Afghanistan. In retaliation, the TTP has carried out multiple attacks on the Pakistani army, resulting in the deaths of several personnel, including a Major.
However, the Taliban’s Ministry of Defence contended that the airstrike also affected “Waziristani refugees,” challenging the claim that only militants were targeted. This escalation of violence has further strained relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with the Taliban issuing a warning of potential retaliation.
In December, the Pakistan-Taliban conflict saw a significant escalation when Afghan Taliban fighters launched an attack on the Pakistani Army in the Kurram area near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. The assault resulted in the death of at least one Pakistani soldier and left at least nine others injured. In retaliatory fire, the Pakistan Army reported that three Taliban fighters were killed.
Pakistan’s war against TTP
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, also known as the Pakistani Taliban, is a coalition of various Islamist militant groups founded in 2007 by Baitullah Mehsud. An offshoot of the Afghan Taliban, the TTP shares a similar ideology with its cross-border counterpart, which is believed to have supported the TTP during the 2001–2021 conflict with the Pakistani government.
The TTP aims to resist the Pakistani state, overthrow its government, and impose Sharia law across the country. In recent months, the group has intensified its attacks on Pakistani forces, prompting accusations from Pakistan that the Afghan Taliban is sheltering these militants. However, the Afghan Taliban has denied these allegations, insisting that it is not collaborating with the TTP.
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