‘Entire nation is on one page against terrorism’

Schools in Pakistan remained closed today in memory of those who lost their lives in last year’s Taliban attack in Peshawar.

Students of Basic Education community school Suhrab Khan Chandio lit the candles to pay homage to martyrs of APS. The parents said that they do not need the old library building to be named after their children, if KP government really wants to name something after them then the Peshawar University should be named after their children.

In another display of solidarity with the victims of the Peshawar school attack, vehicular traffic remained halted for two minutes beginning 10 a.m.in Lahore, and one-minute silence was observed to mark the tragic incident.

But the trauma lingers for many, with parents of the slain children saying they are still seeking answers about how the security apparatus could have failed them so completely. The resolution noted with appreciation that pursuant to that dastardly attack, operation Zarb-e-Azb launched by valiant armed forces proved to be successful.

The attack prompted the government to take several measures, including lifting a moratorium on the death penalty and formulating the National Action Plan against terrorism.

Waheed Anjum, 18, was shot three times during the attack – once in each arm and once in the chest.

The attack, which mostly claimed the lives of school children, has been termed a “mini-9/11” for the country. “The United States remains committed to promoting a secure, stable, and prosperous Pakistan”, said an embassy statement quoting Charge d’ affaires Jonathan Pratt.

Participants of the APS ceremony also included Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Rashad Mehmood, services chiefs, CM Sindh Qaim Ali Shah, CM Punjab Shehbaz Sharif, CM Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak, CM Balochistan Abdul Malik Baloch, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) CM Hafeezur Rehman and KP Governor Mehtab Khan Abbasi and other political leaders including federal ministers.

Pakistan Army seeks to send the message that guns and bullets alone will not silence terror. Pakistan’s top civilian & military leadership attended a formal occasion within the northwestern city of Peshawar to award medals to the victims’ families.

The resolution, moved by Federal Minister Zahid Hamid in the NA, expressing profound grief and sadness over the martyrdom of students and teachers of APS Peshawar on 16th December past year was passed unanimously.