EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Following the launch of America’s ‘war on terror’ in 2001, Pakistan’s frontier areas saw a sharp spike in militancy and the emergence of the Pakistani Taliban. Known collectively until 2018 as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), the region shares a border and kinship ties with Afghanistan, where American troops landed weeks after the events of September 11, 2001, sparking a new era of conflict that is entering its 19th year. Based along the border of the two countries, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) wanted to overthrow the government and establish an Islamic state, as well as support the fight against jihad in Afghanistan.1 The Pakistan Army eventually responded with large-scale military operations in FATA to curb the TTP’s growth and stop militancy – including suicide bombings targeting law enforcement, armed forces, government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and civil society – from spreading across the country. Yet it was FATA that faced the brunt of violent conflict, political instability, and socioeconomic disenfranchisement, which saw the exodus of 5 million people. As Pakistan became a frontline state in the war on terror, unbeknown to most, over 40 Pakistani citizens disappeared across the border between 2003 and 2010. Drawing from the stories of 11 of these captives, this report argues that the government of Pakistan enabled their detainment by American and Afghan forces, and failed to protect the constitutional rights of its citizens. It came to international attention years later that this group along with 60 individuals from around the world, and thousands of Afghan nationals, had been abducted by American and Afghan forces and were being held captive in the Detention Facility in Parwan in Bagram.2 In 2010, Justice Project Pakistan, a legal action non-governmental advocacy organization began litigation against the Pakistani government, asking the Lahore High Court to hold it accountable for failing to protect the legal rights of its citizens. Many had been detained since 2003 — all were subjected to torture, and remained captive without access to legal representation. Following several years of court proceedings, in 2013 and 2014, JPP successfully secured the repatriation of 43 detainees. While litigation was ongoing, the organization released a report called  https://www.un.org/securitycouncil/sanctions/1267/aq_sanctions_list/summaries/entity/tehrik-e-taliban-pakistan%28ttp%29 2  Ackerman, Spencer. “Pakistani Man Held at US Facility Denied Legal Counsel During Decade-long Hold,” The Guardian. Aug. 4, 2014. 1 1