Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Friday appeared to back calls for an “administrative reset,” saying if it was necessary to achieve good governance it should be implemented through constitutional and legal means and in accordance with the will of the people.
Responding to a question during a press conference regarding ongoing security concerns in Balochistan, he addressed recent remarks of Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who had declared the “collapse” of Pakistan’s existing system and stressed on the formation of new provinces or “administrative units” to ensure public welfare.
Maintaining that Naqvi’s statement reflected the minister’s personal views, Chaudhry asserted that good governance is essential for Pakistan’s security and stability. “As a primary stakeholder in security, we would like to say that good governance is the key to security and stability. Without that, your issues cannot be solved,” he said, noting 13 points of the National Action Plan depended on good governance.
He said political parties should debate how to achieve good governance, adding the failure to address longstanding concerns suggested the need for “something” to be done. He said Pakistan’s growing population required new solutions, emphasizing this must be in accordance with the will of the people.
“If good governance requires an administrative reset, then let that happen. If good governance requires changes, then let that happen, but it has to be done through constitutional and legal methods, and as per the will of the people,” he said.
AJK Protests
To questions on ongoing protests in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, he said the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) should have contested elections but instead opted for violence. “Only the state has the monopoly on violence and we cannot allow a mob to have its way,” he said, maintaining the state had responded “very wisely and prudently” and shown restraint despite an “agenda” against 12 reserved seats for refugees.
“They [JAAC] talk about throwing out this occupying force from Kashmir. Which occupying Army are they talking about?” he questioned, accusing the protestors of using social media networks to spread disinformation. He said the AJK government, police and civilian armed forces are tackling the situation, not the Army. “Nothing can change the concept of ‘Kashmir Banega Pakistan,’ and there will be no compromise on that. The electoral process will continue and assemblies will form,” he said.
“The answer is in the Constitution and the rule of law. But nobody can be given a free pass on coercion and use of violence. Everyone will be held accountable for their actions according to the law and Constitution,” he said, emphasizing that Kashmir was, and would remain, Pakistan’s jugular vein.
Claiming the people of both sides of Kashmir would opt to join Pakistan if given the choice, he sought to link the protests to Indian attempts to sow unrest within Pakistan. “This time around, they have cloaked their attempt using the language of rights, without mentioning the obligations that come with it,” he said, noting Kashmir was Pakistan’s “most favored child” in terms of resource allocation compared to the rest of the country.
Hard state
At the outset of his press conference, the military spokesman regretted that Pakistan was “not a hard state.” He explained that a “hard state” refers to a state “in which the law is equal for all, all issues are dealt with through the law, there is no elitism, and everyone is equal before the law.”
Referring to commentary about unrest resulting from rights concerns, he said people must realize that rights come with obligations. Citing Article 5 of the Constitution, he said it required loyalty to the state from all citizens. “Obedience to the Constitution and the law is the obligation of every citizen,” he said, adding talks on right could only begin after accepting these obligations.
“[Chief of Army Staff] Field Marshal Asim Munir, at the National Workshop on Balochistan, said, ‘Yes, we talk about rights, but why don’t we talk about obligations? What are they?’” he recalled, emphasizing that every citizen’s first and last identity is Pakistani, not their provincial identity.
Security situation
Detailing operations against terrorists, he said 40,348 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) had been conducted nationwide thus far this year, the majority taking place in Balochistan. “Nearly 194 intelligence-based operations are being conducted every day,” he said, adding this year had recorded 3,145 terrorist incidents, with 2,084 terrorists killed, or roughly 10 terrorists every day.
The year so far has resulted in 819 people embracing martyrdom, he said, comprising 303 personnel of the Pakistan Army, 194 law enforcement personnel and 322 civilians. He said the country had seen 28 suicide bombings this year, with the majority of suicide bombers Afghan nationals. “Afghan nationals and people associated with their security forces are among the terrorists killed and captured,” he said.
He said security forces had killed 2,597 terrorists in 2025, while 2,084 had been killed so far in 2026. “If you look at 2023, our martyr ratio was higher, and we were killing fewer terrorists. In 2024, the tide started turning. By 2025, for each martyr we were taking out two terrorists,” he said.
He said the rise in terrorism was a result of terrorists understanding Pakistan would no longer appease them and more proactive intelligence-based operations. “Once we get more proactive and engage, once we are doing more effective intelligence-based operations, there will be engagement and incidents increase,” he said.
On the situation in Balochistan, he said the state was pursuing a multi-pronged strategy comprising security operations, border management, action against smuggling, capacity building and socio-economic development. He said around 2.6 million people had returned to Afghanistan, including approximately 600,000 this year, under the repatriation plan. “The first thing is to harden the state. We are doing that. If you want to come, get a visa, go on record and do it. There is no free pass along the border,” he said.
He said the state was also targeting the “terror-crime nexus” in the province, with 2,019 operations carried out against the “illegal spectrum.” Authorities, he said, had recovered smuggled goods worth Rs. 24.4 billion so far this year. Narcotics worth Rs. 18 billion and proceeds linked to human smuggling worth R. s4.6 billion had also been recovered, he added.
He said fuel smuggling had ballooned to around 20.5 million liters per day before authorities moved to curb it. “There is no tax on this. Most of the money goes to a few elites, a few politicians and a few terrorists,” he said, adding the Balochistan government and Frontier Corps had brought the trade under control. He said efforts were underway to strengthen the capacity of security and law enforcement agencies, including technical capabilities such as aerial surveillance, cybersecurity and intelligence.
Lt. Gen. Chaudhry said development and direct engagement with the people formed another pillar of the state’s strategy. “We need to empower the common person, not the elites,” he said, noting federal and provincial Public Sector Development Programs had funded the Mangi Dam, the extension of the Pat Feeder Canal, the N-25 highway and the construction of 100 dams.
He said 119 socioeconomic projects had been completed in Balochistan, while 12 major road infrastructure projects were underway to improve connectivity. He said around 10,800 students received I.T. training in the province annually, while 60 new education facilities and two new health facilities were being established each month. He also cited the Green Balochistan Initiative, saying it was providing loans to poor farmers.
The government is also engaging directly with the public through open forums, he said, adding the Army, the chief minister, politicians and other state institutions are combined conducting around 144 public engagements each day. He said issues raised in such settings were recorded, with 51% having been resolved.
He blamed the province’s restive situation on “elitism and sardarism and the desire to maintain the status quo.” He said this status quo saw citizens denied education and progress, leaving them forced to function as “slaves” for the elite. “They are afraid that times are changing. The more afraid they are, the more anxious they become, the more kinetic they get,” he said of rising terrorist incidents.
“They [terrorists] think, ‘We will do terrorism and then talk. Talk with us. Appease us as you used to.’ We don’t want to talk to you. We will talk to the real people of Balochistan. You are not a stakeholder,” he said, noting some people believed the Balochistan Levies were “our personal army.”
He noted there was also an “external power play,” with willing partners in terrorists and sardars. “They want the same slaves and private jails. They want to see the system they saw during their grandfathers’ time,” he said.
He said terrorists in Balochistan relied on propaganda based on four points: “the sense of deprivation, lack of representation, the missing persons narrative, and terrorism.” On the first of these, he recalled development projects and budget allocations to Balochistan, adding Gwadar had three universities, four colleges, the Pak-China Hospital, five child dispensaries, an international airport, a seaport, an expressway, industrial free zones, tax-free zones and a cricket stadium. “In all of Pakistan, tell me another city with a population of 300,000 that has all this,” he said.
Similarly, he said, Turbat’s 500,000 population had two universities, colleges, an international airport and road connectivity. Balochistan overall, he said, has 13 major hospitals and 650 dispensaries. The province has a budget per capita of more than Rs. 75,000, more than any other province. “What deprivation is this rooted in?” he questioned, noting the terrorists targeted development projects, killing laborers, attacking roads.
He said the same families dominated electoral politics in the province. “Take out the lists of the assemblies. The same families, the same parties. They win, then their father or brother wins. If they win, its democracy; if not, then its rigging. What representation is this?” he said.
“They say thousands have been picked up. The government made a commission so that if there is someone missing, there would be a name,” he said, referring to missing persons. He said the commission had received 10,901 cases since the early 2010s, with more than 9,000 of these disposed of.
“Of those, around 5,000 people have gone back home, others are in custody, 308 were found to have died, and around 2,400 were found not to be cases of missing persons,” he said, adding around 2,700 cases remain pending, with a majority in Sindh. He said some people listed as “missing” had later been found involved in terrorist activities. “Some are in Turbat, do terrorism, are killed and then are included in the missing persons list,” he said.
He further alleged “terrorism propaganda,” saying attackers film their incidents to show there is a problem in Balochistan.
Unfortunately, he said, Balochistan’s geography and terrain posed significant challenges for security forces. He said population figures did not always reflect the number of people physically present in the province, as many residents counted in the census were working elsewhere.
Terror nexus
He alleged Fitna al Hindustan, Khawarij, the RSS, India and the Afghan Taliban were working together. “What is happening? This Hindustan and Khawarij, and the people sitting in the RSS, India and the Afghan Taliban, they are together. We are hunting them and seeking them, and they are now going for soft targets,” he said, noting attacks this year included 178 civilians targeted, 55 kidnappings, 24 attacks on infrastructure, 60 incidents in which property was set on fire, 47 incidents involving damage to property and robbery, and 105 attacks on police and Levies personnel.
“Baloch people are speaking loudly against this terrorism,” he said, regretting that terrorist groups were exploiting young women through what he described as “honey traps,” blackmail and coercion. “The way they are exploiting the daughters of Balochistan shows how merciless and lowly they are. They honey-trap them, mentally trap them and make them commit acts of terrorism,” he said.
He said over 300 Indian websites and more than 1,000 social media accounts were involved in disseminating content related to Balochistan. “Most of the propaganda comes from Indian-run accounts,” he said. “First they seed it on Telegram. An incident or event is seeded, then framing is done by initiators, then given to amplifiers, followed by mass amplification through mainstream media channels, and then it is picked up by international media. Then you pick it up and run it as reality,” he said.
Pak-U.A.E. ties
To a question on the U.A.E.’s alleged involvement in Balochistan unrest, he rejected speculation about strained ties between Islamabad and Abu Dhabi, describing the two countries as close allies. “Pakistan and UAE are two brotherly and closely bonded countries, and we share deep ties. This speculation in social media about there being problems between Pakistan and U.A.E., 99% of this illogical discussion takes place outside the country. These rumors are spread by those who do not wish Pakistan to have brotherly relations with the Gulf countries,” he said.
“You have to understand that the U.A.E. is in an environment of military conflict right now and because of that, it is undergoing certain changes, and these changes in rules are important to its national security. It is therefore unacceptable to concoct false stories on social media on differences between these two brotherly countries,” he said, adding the two states shared deep, historical ties and that their relations were at the political, strategic and, most importantly, people-to-people levels.
Martyrs
On JUIF chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s remarks on martyrs, the DG ISPR said they were “deplorable” and “difficult to understand.” Describing martyrs as the backbone of Pakistan’s armed forces, he said the politician’s comments on the martyrs of the Kargil War reflected the Indian narrative.
He said members of the armed forces sacrificed the most precious thing they possessed—their right to life—for the protection of the nation, adding that such sacrifice began long before a soldier embraced martyrdom.
“You have just seen it in Balochistan. When our officer or soldier goes out on an intelligence-based operation, when he goes out for an operation against these terrorists and Khwarij, when that young policeman or FC soldier stands alone at a checkpoint on a mountain where there is no one for miles, and he knows that I am a target of these terrorists, these Indian proxies, yet he performs his duty there, he has already become ready to sacrifice his life, his right to life, his future and the future of his children,” he said. “Do you think he is doing it for some pay? Would you do it? That is why it is difficult to understand why someone would say such things. It is not like that,” he said.
The military spokesman urged political leaders to avoid creating confusion among the public. “We should create awareness among our nation. We do not need to confuse them further,” he added.