On the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, we honour the memory of all those who lost their lives to terrorism and express our profound solidarity with the survivors, their families and communities whose lives have been forever changed by violence.
Pakistan has paid an enormous price in the fight against terrorism. For more than two decades, tens of thousands of our people, including children, political leaders, members of the Armed Forces, law enforcement personnel, first responders and public servants, have lost their lives. From Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto to the innocent children and teachers of Army Public School Peshawar, and countless other Pakistanis, terrorism has inflicted wounds that remain part of our national memory.
Even today, our citizens and security personnel continue to make sacrifices, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. We salute their courage and stand with every family that has lost a loved one to terrorism.
No religion, faith, sect, ideology, grievance, cause or political objective can ever justify the killing of innocent people. Terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be condemned without distinction. The international community must ensure that no territory is used to perpetrate terrorism against another country and that no terrorist organisation receives sanctuary, financing, weapons, logistical assistance or any other form of external support.
At the same time, remembrance must lead to responsibility and recovery. Victims and survivors often live for years with physical injuries, psychological trauma, loss of livelihood, interrupted education and social isolation. Their suffering cannot be answered merely through immediate relief or one-time financial compensation. They deserve empathy, medical and psychosocial care, education, rehabilitation, legal assistance and livelihood opportunities that enable them to rebuild their lives with dignity.
Pakistan remains committed to strengthening a coordinated and survivor-centred system of support. In keeping with this year’s focus on victim-led digital initiatives, we should responsibly harness technology to make information, assistance and rehabilitation services more accessible to victims and their families.
Supporting victims of terrorism is not an act of charity. It is a matter of justice, human dignity and national responsibility. Government institutions, healthcare and educational institutions, civil society, the private sector, media and development partners must work together to ensure sustained support for victims and their families. The suffering of victims must not disappear from our national conscience when it disappears from the news cycle.
Our struggle against terrorism must also confront the extremism, intolerance and hatred that allow violence to take root. We must address the social, ethnic and religious discrimination that extremists exploit to spread hatred and division. When intolerance is allowed to deepen, it can create fertile ground for radicalisation, violent extremism and ultimately terrorism.
Terrorism cannot be defeated by security measures alone. We must build a society in which our young people are protected from radicalisation and in which differences in ethnicity, religion, sect or political belief must never become a justification for violence. No child should inherit the fear, trauma or hatred created by terrorism.
Terrorists have targeted Pakistanis across provinces, communities, faiths and institutions. But they have failed to break our national resolve. The sacrifices of our people belong to no single province, ethnicity, sect or institution. They are sacrifices made for Pakistan as a whole.
On this solemn day, let us remember those we have lost, stand with those who continue to bear the consequences of terrorism, and renew our collective determination to defeat terrorism and build a peaceful, tolerant, pluralistic, compassionate and resilient Pakistan.
May Allah Almighty grant eternal peace to the departed, give strength and patience to their families, and bless Pakistan with enduring peace, stability, prosperity and national cohesion.
Pakistan Zindabad
