Thirty-Five Khawarij Eliminated: Pakistan’s Resolve Against India’s Proxy War

Thirty-five Khawarij, belonging to the Indian proxy network known as Fitna al-Khawarij, were sent to hell in two separate engagements across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. These intelligence-based operations, carried out by Pakistan’s security forces, once again prove that New Delhi’s strategy of bleeding Pakistan through proxy militancy will never succeed.

For years, India has relied on covert networks, funneling money, training, and ideological fuel to militant outfits tasked with destabilizing Pakistan’s tribal belt. From the arrest of Kulbhushan Jadhav to dossiers presented at the UN, Islamabad has consistently exposed how Indian agencies use terrorism as statecraft. The 35 Khawarij killed in September represent the latest expendable pawns in this proxy war. Their fate is a warning: those who pick up arms at the behest of a foreign master will meet only death.

The choice of terminology, “Khawarij”, is not accidental. By evoking one of Islam’s most reviled historical sects, these terrorists are stripped of religious legitimacy. They are not “fighters” or “rebels,” but traitors to faith and country, mercenaries who murder civilians while parroting a distorted creed. Pakistan’s security forces have rightly drawn a clear moral boundary: The Khawarij are not part of society, they are an enemy within, guided by an enemy abroad.

Yet while the armed forces continue to crush Indian-backed militants with precision and sacrifice, a troubling imbalance persists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The provincial government’s response to insecurity remains sluggish, often reactive rather than preventative. Poor governance leaves fertile ground for recruiters to exploit. KP’s leadership must rise to the challenge, security gains must be matched by governance gains. The military should not shoulder the entire burden of stabilization alone.

It is important to recognize the broader strategic backdrop. Pakistan has faced an unrelenting wave of militancy since the Taliban’s return in Afghanistan, as groups exploit porous borders and cross-border sanctuaries. Islamabad has repeatedly urged Kabul to act decisively against militants using Afghan soil, but until that materializes, Pakistan must rely on its own intelligence and its own resolve. In this context, the September operations were not routine, they were a message. They signaled to adversaries, both foreign and domestic, that Pakistan will not hesitate to strike wherever a threat emerges, and that Indian proxies will be hunted down regardless of the terrain they exploit.

India’s fingerprints on militancy in Pakistan are too blatant to ignore. From Gilgit-Baltistan to Balochistan, and now in KP, Indian intelligence has pumped resources into destabilization campaigns, but what Delhi fails to grasp is the resilience of Pakistani society and the operational reach of its military. Thirty-five Khawarij were eliminated not in some distant battlefield, but within Pakistani territory where communities increasingly reject militancy and feed intelligence to the state. This social resilience, when coupled with precise kinetic action, is what ensures Pakistan’s long-term security.

The soldiers martyred in these operations remind us that Pakistan’s struggle is not abstract; it is paid for in blood. Each IBO represents a chain of sacrifices, from intelligence officers to local informants, from foot soldiers to commanders. Their service is what holds the line against India’s proxy war.

The lesson from the September IBOs is simple: Pakistan will not be coerced through terror. Thirty-five Khawarij, dispatched to hell, symbolize both the futility of India’s designs and the determination of Pakistan’s defenders. What remains is for KP’s civilian leadership to finally step forward to match the valor of the soldiers who guard its soil. Only then will Pakistan’s victory over Fitna al-Khawarij be complete, not just on the battlefield, but in the hearts and livelihoods of its people.