The government has decided to implement “comprehensive measures” to curb the activities of banned terrorist organizations on social media, including blocking their accounts and SIM cards. These decisions were made during a meeting of the National Action Plan (NAP) coordination committee on December 3, chaired by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.

According to a statement issued after the meeting, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) will collaborate in blocking social media accounts operated by proscribed organizations, while provincial governments will formulate strategies to prevent the use of unauthorized SIM cards. Relevant institutions, including the PTA, were instructed to present an effective mechanism for these measures at the next meeting.

The meeting also decided to enhance coordination mechanisms between the National Counter Terrorism Authority (Nacta) and the provinces for which the National Fusion Centre (NFC) was established.

The meeting received a briefing that 206 terrorists had been killed in 7,984 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) conducted till October this year. Interior Minister Naqvi condemned recent incidents of terrorism in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and emphasized the need for improving the professional capabilities of the counterterrorism forces in these regions, adding that the police and Frontier Constabulary (FC) would be strengthened.

PTA logo (Source – PTA website)