Eight Pakistan nationals arrested in Greece in connection with terror plot

Unconfirmed reports suggest that eight Pakistan nationals have been arrested in Greece for plotting terror attacks. The arrests have once again brought the spotlight back on Pakistan which has been the main spreader of jihadist terrorism across the globe.

In Europe, jihadist terrorism emerged only in the 1990s. In many European countries, awareness of this new development took some time. In fact, the threat posed by jihadist terrorism was underestimated, overlooked, and often misunderstood.

Of all different kinds of political-religious terrorism, transnational jihadist terrorism is the most threatening one to western values, interests and societies. This form of terrorism is the product of a combination of Islamist ideology and the idea of the jihad.

In this regard, Pakistan origin terrorists have been at the forefront in executing this form of terrorism. In September 2020, Europe felt a sudden jolt when arrest warrants were issued for fourteen Pakistanis in Italy in connection with the terrorist attack on the Charlie Hebdo office in Paris.

It confirmed the growing presence of Pakistani radicals in Europe.

In December 2020, French authorities arrested four more Pakistani nationals who had prior knowledge of the attack. Ever since, Pakistani terror supporters have been under a constant watch in the UK, Spain, Italy, France and Germany.

In another incident of Pakistan origin terrorists planning a terror attack on European soil, Greek police arrested two Pakistani nationals in March 2023 who were allegedly planning mass-casualty terrorist attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in the country.

Reports indicated that the target was a Chabad House, which includes a Kosher restaurant and also hosts other religious services. Their aim was not only to cause the loss of life of innocent citizens, but also to undermine the sense of security in the country, while hurting public institutions and threatening Greece’s international relations.

An analysis of the seized information and digital data revealed and confirmed that the members of the network had already chosen a building of special importance as the target of the attack, carried out the reconnaissance of the area and received final instructions to carry out the attack.

Following further investigations into the March 2023 terror plot, unconfirmed sources claim that eight more Pakistani nationals have been arrested in June 2023. All of them supposedly belong to Sargodha area of Pakistan.

These arrests underline that the spike in illegal migration of radical Pakistanis to Greece has only undermined the security concerns of the country.

Pakistan has often been accused by various countries, including its neighbors as well as by the United States and European countries like Germany and France of involvement in a variety of terrorist activities in both its local region of South Asia and beyond.

It is high time that countries across the globe strengthen their immigration regulations to block illegal entry of Pakistan nationals that are perceived as a threat to national identity, domestic security and the social fabric of the recipient countries.

READ MORE: Air Defender 23: NATO's largest aviation exercise begins in Germany.