Nobody had taken responsibility for the suicide attack on a vehicle carrying ANP workers in Bajaur that killed two people till the time of writing, but it bore the fingerprints of TTP, which is clearly trying to make a statement by attacking soft targets as well as security personnel now that the window for peace is closed. Both Islamabad and Rawalpindi would no doubt remember that this is precisely how TTP began its strikes inside Pakistan last time; hitting something every few days till the attacks built a momentum of their own. Therefore, hopefully nobody would need to be reminded just what is at stake and how every moment that the state uses to consider what to do about its enemies makes them stronger and able to plan better. The few exchanges that did take place in Kandahar and Khost revealed that the TTP high command was somewhat delusional. Not only did it expect the government to release hundreds of its members in custody, but also that it would implement TTP’s obscure reading of our sacred religion, reverse the FATA/KP merger, and promise to behave itself in future just for good measure. But when it was told that the state and constitution of Pakistan were already keeping with the letter and spirit of Islam, only those prisoners who have been through the deradicalisation process would be released, and all this would be possible only when TTP as a whole promised not to cross any more red lines, the whole thing just fell through. Even if those within the government who thought these peace talks were a smart idea can feel good because they tried to give peace one more chance, the simple truth is that those that opposed these negotiations right from the beginning have been vindicated. And it’s a crying shame that it has taken the loss of innocent lives for that realisation to sink in. The state must come to the understanding, once and for all, that it will have to end TTP and all it stands for if the people of Pakistan are to live in peace. And the time to do that is now. *