Extremism greater threat to Pakistan than terrorism: Report

Tehran, Feb 17 (ANI): Pakistan's problem of extremism is a greater threat to the country than terrorism, a new report by the Jinnah Institute has said.

The report titled 'Extremism Watch: Mapping Conflict Trends in Pakistan 2010-2011' recorded and examined various types of extremist incidents that occurred in Pakistan over the past year, and the effects that these incidents had on Pakistani society, the Daily Times reports.

Jinnah Institute's Executive Director Ejaz Haider has acknowledged the need to integrate various issues categorised as extremist activities so that effective policy recommendations could be developed for the country.

He stated that extremism was a greater menace in terms of a state's ability to deal with it, rather than terrorism.

Jinnah Institute's Deputy Director Salman Zaidi said that 181 incidents of extremism had been reported in various parts of Pakistan, causing a loss of 534 lives and leaving an additional 1,391 persons injured.

Zaidi warned that the data was alarming a wake-up call for policymakers and legislators who were dealing with human security issues facing Pakistan's citizen.

Meanwhile, human rights activist Tahira Abdullah lamented that the lives of journalists in Pakistan were at stake, and wondered how credible media reports could be in terms of evaluating the incidents of extremism in Pakistan. (ANI)