Countering violent extremism.

Owing to the evolving characAter of conflicts, countering violent extremism (CVE) has grown to be a challenging task on a global scale. Pakistan is presently dealing with a slew of issues and counAtering extremism is a major one among them. The underlying causes of violent extremism, the emergence of terrorist orAganisations that support it, and their connections to antagoAnistic external sources not only disrupt the country's social fabric but also leave an adverse impact on the country's economic growth and prosperity. Since its inception, Pakistan has had various ecclesiasAtical, religious, and sectarian conAflicts that took violent shapes. PakAistan is the hardest hit by religious and ethnic radicalisation, which is encouraged by both external and internal actors who are giving non-religious as well as religious militancy a narrative and resourcAes. Nevertheless, since Pakistan joined forces with Washington to fight communists in South Asia, notably in Afghanistan, the degree of VE has multiplied. It is a well-esAtablished fact that the repercusAsions of the Taliban's rise in AfAghanistan, the twin tower attacks, and the ensuing WoT turned out to be much more severe for Pakistan than were expected. However, deAspite suffering significant damages Pakistan has stayed dedicated to eradicating terrorism.

Given the circumstances that contribute to violent extremism, combating it is a difficult task as it relies not only on the state's intenAtions but also on foreign assistance. Violent extremism is deemed an intricate subject in academic setAtings and has several definitions and analyses. Additionally, phrases like terrorism and radicalism are used to describe VE interchangeAably. The treatment of radicalisaAtion and radicalism as different from terrorism and extremism is something that researchers and intellectuals are cognisant of. The reason is that radicalisation carAries negative as well as positive unAdertones. However, this does not preclude radicals from becomAing terrorists and extremists since radicalisation can result in extremAism. Extremism develops from poAlarised philosophical narratives and behaviours that lead to a sense of superiority over other people. It also results from conflicts beAtween the government's ideology and popular belief, socio-politico-economic inequalities, conflicting goals of big powers, and their use of violent means.

In recent decades, the concept of CVE has gained popularity among policymakers and...