Young Pashtuns, fed up with alleged abuses, challenge Pakistan's military

Pashtuns make up an estimated 15% of the population and predominate in the areas of the country that border Afghanistan

A movement of young activists, tired of being caught up in the crossfire of the war on terror in Pakistan’s northwest, is challenging the country’s military.

The group, from the Pashtun ethnic minority, is pushing back against what it sees as systematic human-rights abuses by Pakistan’s powerful military and its sincerity in combating all terrorist organisations.

The movement is led by a political novice, Manzoor Pashteen, and powered by a blitz on social media that circumvents a domestic media blackout on the group. The mainstream media’s regulator is increasingly enforcing a legal provision barring criticism of the military.

The Pashtuns in the country’s