Tariq Gidar Group (, abbreviated TGG) is a militant jihadist group based in Pakistan. The group is linked to

Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan The Pakistani Taliban, officially the Tehreek-i-Taliban-e-Pakistan (TTP), is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani border. Formed in 2007 by Baitullah Mehsud, its current ...

and is mainly active in the

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...

region of

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

History

The group faction was established in the 2000s and headquartered in

Darra Adam Khel Darra Adam Khel () is the main town of Dara Adam Khel Tehsil (formerly known as "Frontier Region Kohat") in the Kohat District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It has gained fame and notoriety for its bazaars packed with gunsmiths and weapons me ...

, Pakistan. During the late 2000s, the group claimed responsibility for many kidnappings and murders which include the beheading of

Piotr Stańczak Piotr Stańczak (23 July 1966 – 7 February 2009) was a Polish geologist. In February 2009, he was abducted and beheaded in Pakistan by Islamist terrorists, the Tariq Gidar Group . Abduction Stańczak was abducted in the city of Attock in Septe ...

. The group also claimed responsibility for many attacks since 2010 which include the Bacha Khan University attack in

Charsadda Chārsadda (; ; ; ) is a town and headquarters of Charsadda District, in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.2014 Peshawar school massacre On 16 December 2014, six gunmen affiliated with the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) conducted a terrorist attack on the Army Public School in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar. The terrorists, all of whom were foreign nationals, com ...

where 132 children and 9 staff were murdered. The group was also active in some parts of Afghanistan. On 25 May 2016, the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

officially designated Tariq Gidar Group a terrorist organization, this also is with the designation of the group Jamaat ul Dawa al Quran. On 13 July 2016, the US killed the leader of Tariq Gidar Group, Umar Naray, who had also masterminded the 2014 Peshawar school massacre in a targeted airstrike in

Nangarhar Province Nangarhār (Pashto: ; Dari: ), also called Nangrahar or Ningrahar, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country and Border, bordering Logar Province, Logar, Kabul Province, Kabul, Laghman Province, Laghm ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

(before the

Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...

take-over and the Fall of Kabul in 2021) near the Pakistani-Afghani border known as the

Durand Line The Durand Line (; ; ), also known as the Afghanistan–Pakistan border, is a international border between Afghanistan and Pakistan in South Asia. The western end runs to the border with Iran and the eastern end to the border with China. The D ...

. The strike was also targeting members of the

Islamic State – Khorasan Province The Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISKP or ISIS–K) is a regional branch of the Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist group Islamic State (IS) active in Central Asia, Central and South Asia, primarily Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uz ...

with both being said in a Statement by-then United States press secretary,

Peter Cook Peter Edward Cook (17 November 1937 – 9 January 1995) was an English comedian, actor, satirist, playwright and screenwriter. He was the leading figure of the British satire boom of the 1960s, and he was associated with the anti-establishmen ...

. On 22 March 2019, the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

officially added Tariq Gidar Group onto the

ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee The ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee is a committee of the United Nations Security Council tasked with implementing international sanctions against the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. It was established as the Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanct ...

. Though the Pakistani government has stated that through

Operation Zarb-e-Azb Operation Zarb-e-Azb (Pashto/ ALA-LC: ; ) was a joint military offensive conducted by the Pakistan Armed Forces against various militant groups, including the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the East Tu ...

the Tariq Gidar Group has been destroyed, they still remain active in the

area.

References

{{Reflist 2000s in Asia 2000s in Pakistan 2000s establishments 2000s establishments in Pakistan 2010s in Asia 2010s in Pakistan Organizations designated as terrorist by the United States Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan Jihadist groups in Pakistan