PTI rejects DG ISPR’s claims, calls comments ‘politically charged’

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) responded to the chief military spokesperson’s press conference, calling his comments “politically charged”.

In a statement published in “In the last three and a half years, Pakistan has fallen from ninth to second place in the index,” he added.

The party’s statement concluded by criticizing the DG ISPR for ridiculing a provincial leader who has made significant sacrifices in the fight against terrorism at a time when Pakistan continues to face growing threats.

In another post, the party described it as “two consecutive political press conferences” and said all that was achieved was a response from Pakistanis, who shared previous clips and data countering the claims. PTI said the press conference was “totally rejected”.

On the other hand, Aleema Khan, sister of PTI founder Imran Khan, responded to DG ISPR’s comments linking the rise in terrorism with the policies of the KP government, calling the statement “shameful”. She asked, “Who among our people supports terrorism? It is not right to talk this way about Pakistani patriots.”

PTI general secretary Salman Akram Raja described the DG ISPR’s comments as a failed attempt to create a narrative. “People know the truth; you can’t fool everyone all the time. This attempt should stop. People understand why terrorism exists,” he said.

He further recalled that a jirga was called in the KP Assembly a month ago, which was attended by representatives of all districts and political groups. “Everyone spoke openly and it is clear to everyone why there is terrorism, why there are riots and why there has been bloodshed in KP. You cannot hide behind your own rigid statements,” he said.

Former senator Mushtaq Ahmed Khan also criticized the briefing and questioned its democratic legitimacy. “What kind of democratic system is this in which DG ISPR shows the media photographs and speeches of the leaders of a single province and party, makes political comments against them and issues threats?” asked.

Earlier, DG ISPR said that 80 per cent of all terror incidents in the country occurred in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. He attributed the trend to what he described as a “politically permissive environment” for militants and an “emerging nexus between political and militant elements” in the province.

At a news conference on Tuesday, the military’s top spokesman said the prevailing environment had allowed extremist groups to organize, build facilitation networks and repeatedly defy state orders, with implications for the country’s overall security situation.

During the briefing, the DG ISPR heavily criticized the PTI and its leadership for their stated positions on counterterrorism. He played video clips of senior PTI leaders, including KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, and showed screenshots of statements attributed to PTI founder Imran Khan, questioning what he called their narrative on fighting terrorism.