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Editor’s Note
Welcome to the October/November issue of the Durand Dispatch: Strategic Messaging, our monthly briefing that examines how non-state actors across the Afghanistan–Pakistan region shape perception, frame legitimacy, and assert influence through media and narrative construction. This newsletter complements our Durand Dispatch: Perspectives Series, which covers a wider range of topics including militancy, Afghanistan-Pakistan relations, and security dynamics across South and Central Asia.
October 2025 reflected a period of recalibration across Pakistan’s militant ecosystem. An escalation in Pakistan-Afghanistan tensions, following Pakistani airstrikes on Kabul, coincided with a noticeable reduction in Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan’s (TTP) official online activity, even as the group continued to pursue territorial control strategies, while engaging with Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan supporters. Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent continued pushing out ideological narratives through the publication of Nawai Ghazwat-ul-Hind, while the Islamic State Khorasan Province consolidated its Nashir Pakistan media network and expanded Baloch-focused outreach. Separatist propaganda from Baloch organizations remained constrained due to ongoing digital restrictions, while smaller coalition groups increasingly relied on alternative branding to navigate platform disruption
Highlights in this Issue
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Adopted deliberate messaging restraint during Pakistan-Afghanistan negotiations while simultaneously broadening territorial influence through public shows of strength in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and tapping into Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan grievances as a new recruitment pipeline in Punjab.
Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) Advanced a long-horizon ideological strategy, with Nawai Ghazwat-ul-Hind functioning as a training syllabus, political manifesto, and justification for armed struggle, linking India-centric jihad directly to the liberation of Jerusalem. AQIS is positioning itself as the intellectual architect of South Asian militancy, not the leading kinetic actor.
Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) Consolidated outreach through Nashir Pakistan and sharpened its influence campaign in Balochistan by reframing tribal authority as apostasy, urging followers to dismantle local governance structures. ISKP is exploiting intra-Baloch power tensions as an entry point for deeper expansion inside Pakistan.
Baloch Separatist Organizations (BLA / BLF / SRA) Digital restrictions forced propaganda into a maintenance mode (claims and tributes), yet messaging continued to highlight urban-educated recruits and temporary road seizures, signaling adaptation despite constraints. Militants are recalibrating tactics under blackout conditions - less visible does not mean less active.
Emerging Coalitions Increasing reliance on front brands to sustain activity and legitimacy as platforms tighten enforcement. Alias warfare is becoming a broader trend across Pakistan's jihadist ecosystem, complicating attribution and threat tracking.
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