Tehrik Nefaz-e Shariat Mohammadi (TNSM)

Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi, Tehrik-e-Nefaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi, Tanzeem-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi, TNSM, Movement for the Enforcement of Islamic Law, Black Turbans, Mullah Radio

Pakistan

TNSM was established in 1994 by Maulana Sufi Muhammad. When Sufi Muhammad was arrestedThTt in 2009 by Pakistani security forces, Maulana Fazlullah took over leadership of the TNSM.

TNSM recruits from among the lower classes in the region and radio broadcasts propaganda to garner public support. The group is believed to consist of between 2,000 and 10,000 fighters.

TNSM maintains ties to some governmental entities in the Khyber Pakhtunkwha province, regional law enforcement agencies, and the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) network.

Broadly, TNSM draws resources from a disparate network of individuals, mosques, and madrassas (Islamic schools), illegal mining operations, and narco-trafficking. Historically, the group has also received support from Saudi Arabia and numerous Gulf States.

TNSM was established in 1994 by Maulana Sufi Muhammad, after drawing in large numbers of experienced Afghan mujahideen.

November 1994: TNSM launched a military campaign to undermine state authority and take control of government functions in the Swat Valley.

October 2007: TNSM detonated a roadside bomb, killing 20 Pakistani soldiers.

2009: TNSM carried out another offensive against government forces and enemy elements in the Swat Valley, further consolidating the group’s hold on power.

November 2011: TNSM carried out a suicide bomb attack against a Pakistani military barracks and training camp, killing approximately 40 personnel.

The TNSM is ideologically similar to the Afghan Taliban, tracing its roots to Wahhabism, an ultraconservative religious movement or branch of Sunni Islam.

TNSM’s main objective is to unseat the Pakistani government, which it views as an agent of Western interests, achieve judicial reform, and advance Sharia law within Pakistan, especially in regions where TNSM has consolidated control. Ultimately, the group seeks to establish an Islamic caliphate in Pakistan.

TNSM primarily targets Pakistani security forces, government officials, and other groups and individuals that oppose their radical perspective.

Improvise explosive devices, vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (VBIED), suicide bombings, firearm attacks, low-intensity bomb attacks, rocket and mortar attacks, massacres, kidnapping, extortion, assassination, drug trafficking, arms trafficking.