New Dehli: A total of 3,021 people were killed and 7,334 injured in terrorists attacks in Pakistan last year, national media reported citing a new report by the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS).
According to the report from the Islamabad-based defense think-tank, the death toll was 48% higher than in 2008.
Researchers counted a total of 12,600 violent deaths across the country in 2009, 14 times more than in 2006. At least half of those killed were militants, the report said.
Militants were killed in U.S. drone strikes or, more often, sweeping army offensives against their mountain strongholds in Swat and South Waziristan.
The report also indicates a rise in police activity throughout the country. Pakistani police conducted 596 anti terror operations in 2009 against 313 the year before.
Pakistan has witnessed a rise in bombings believed to be conducted by Islamists in response to military operations in their strongholds in the northwest.
The Pakistani military has been holding massive operations in South Waziristan, the Taliban’s stronghold on the border with Afghanistan. The United States has also urged Pakistan to target Al-Qaeda militants on its territory, accusing them of carrying out attacks on U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.
