Pakistan recorded a sharp fall in terrorist attacks during October, according to figures from the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies reported by Dawn on 1 November 2026. The country saw 143 attacks in the month, down 37 percent from 226 incidents in September.

A break in a rising trend

The October decline reversed two consecutive months of rising violent incidents. The improvement was driven largely by better security conditions in Balochistan and mainland Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, alongside a marked drop in suicide bombings.

Fatalities directly linked to terrorist attacks fell by 57 percent, from 260 deaths in September to 111 in October. Injuries fell by 71 percent, from 242 to 69, the lowest monthly injury count in the past year.

Suicide attacks and security operations

Suicide attacks fell to a single vehicle-borne incident in October that caused no casualties. That compared with three attacks in September that killed 45 people and injured 138.

Security forces also carried out counterterrorism operations across the country during October, killing 156 terrorists and arresting seven suspected terrorists, according to the figures.

Kidnappings moved in the opposite direction

The same figures contained a warning sign. Kidnappings rose to their highest monthly total in the past 12 months, increasing by 22 percent to 88 people abducted in October. Balochistan accounted for 70 of those kidnapped.

Regionally, terrorist attacks in Balochistan fell by 46 percent, mainland Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded a 31 percent drop, and the former FATA region saw a 12 percent decline. Punjab reported two attacks resulting in four deaths, while Sindh, Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan recorded no terrorist attacks.

Across the first ten months of 2026, the total stood at 1,376 attacks and 3,902 deaths.