Web Desk: Senior journalist and political analyst Aqeel Ahmed Yousafzai has claimed that several prominent figures associated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had past links with the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) led by Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
Yousafzai said some of the militant group’s founding figures had previously been associated with the religious-political party, drawing renewed attention to the complex political and militant networks that emerged in Pakistan’s tribal regions.
His remarks were made in the context of Pakistan’s evolving political landscape and historical developments in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
According to Yousafzai, TTP founder Baitullah Mehsud had previously served as a JUI-F office-bearer in Waziristan.
He also claimed that Hakimullah Mehsud, who later became a leading TTP commander, had ideological links with Fazlur Rehman and his political organisation.
Yousafzai further alleged that Omar Khalid Khorasani, who later established Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, had also been associated with JUI-F in the past.
Yousafzai also discussed the political strategies adopted by former prime minister Imran Khan and Fazlur Rehman in their dealings with the country’s powerful military establishment.
He said both leaders had, at different times, warned that excluding political forces from decision-making could contribute to instability in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and the former tribal areas.
According to Yousafzai, political actors had raised concerns that developments in Afghanistan and the Taliban’s model of governance could influence the emergence of new movements in the region.
He said Fazlur Rehman’s party was subsequently brought into government, although political tensions between opposition groups and the establishment have continued.
Yousafzai said the political environment was again changing as ties between Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Fazlur Rehman’s JUI-F appeared to be strengthening.
He also pointed to Mahmood Khan Achakzai and other opposition figures who have adopted increasingly critical positions toward the establishment.
The developing political alignments could become more significant if opposition parties launch a major mobilisation later this year, he said.
Yousafzai also said Fazlur Rehman was expected to travel to India in September, where meetings with senior Indian officials, including National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, were anticipated.
However, details of any confirmed itinerary or meetings were not provided in the material available.
Yousafzai suggested that developments following any major political mobilisation on Sept. 27 could offer greater clarity about the opposition’s direction and the significance of Fazlur Rehman’s reported India visit in October.
For now, the potential convergence between PTI and JUI-F, alongside renewed political confrontation with the establishment, is adding another layer of uncertainty to Pakistan’s already fluid political environment.
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