A Most Dangerous Place: Meeting the Challenge of Militancy and Terror in FATA

Increased militancy and violence in the border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan known as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan has brought FATA into sharper focus, as U.S., Afghan, and Pakistani leaders attempt to find solutions to the problems underlying the situation there. This most dangerous spot on the map may well be the source of another 9/11 type of attack on the Western world or its surrogates in the region. Should such an attack occur, it likely will be spawned in the militancy that grips FATA and contiguous areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan today. Failure to bring peace and to restore a modicum of stability to FATA will have widespread repercussions for the region and perhaps the world.

This report attempts to define the conditions that spawn militancy and violence among the Pashtun tribesmen that inhabit FATA and suggest practicable ways of approaching them in the short and medium term. The Center for Strategic and International Studies assembled a team of experts chaired by Shuja Nawaz. Their views and recommendations are distilled in this monograph. Mr. Nawaz and some of his colleagues will be available to present the report and answer questions.

Arnaud de Borchgrave, Director of CSIS' Transnational Threats Project and supervisor of this project will moderate the discussion.

The report will be provided to all guests at the conclusion of the session.

Please RSVP to TNT@csis.org or 202-775-3282 by Tuesday, January 6