Armed attack on Pakistani University

A chemistry professor and a student were among those killed, said Zafar, adding that it was not initially clear how many attackers managed to penetrate the campus.

At least 30 people are confirmed killed today after gunmen stormed the campus of Bacha Khan University, just outside of Peshawar, and began executing students.

The Taliban have been weakened recently in Pakistan after the military launched an offensive in their main haven of North Waziristan, but the attack and a suicide bombing a day earlier that killed 11 people both showed that they are still a risky force.

Pakistani army chief General Raheel Sharif visited the campus and a town hospital where the wounded were brought.

Although other Taliban sources disputed his claim, Mansoor is also believed to have masterminded the deadly school massacre some 27km away in Peshawar on Dec.16, 2014, which left 141 people dead, including 132 children. Check back soon for further information.

Heavily-armed Taliban militants stormed the prestigious university in Pakistan’s restive northwest Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province this morning, firing indiscriminately on students and teachers.

The Bacha Khan University is named after Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, founder of a liberal, pacificist party. “I locked myself in my room and in the cupboard”. Two attacks last week in the southwestern city of Quetta killed 19 people, including soldiers and police. The terrorists were contained in two blocks within the university and troops, commandos are participating in the operation.

Security forces are not sure how many terrorists are holed up inside the university. Mohammad Khorasani said the group does not target non-military organizations.

Yousafzai said between four to 10 attackers were involved in the attack.

The assault was claimed by a Pakistani Taliban faction but branded “un-Islamic” by the umbrella group’s leadership, who vowed to hunt down those responsible.

“We are determined and resolved in our commitment to wipe out the menace of terrorism from our homeland”, Sharif said in the statement.

Militant attacks have declined in Pakistan since the start of the North Waziristan operation. “All students have been evacuated from the hostels, but militants are still hiding in different parts of the university and some students and staff are stuck inside”, he said.

“Such cowardice attack could not shake the resolve of the Government in the fight against terrorism”, he said.

Rana, whose institute tracks militant movement, said the divisions in the Taliban over who carried out Wednesday’s attack probably has more to do with a fear of retribution than a reflection of a deeply divided Taliban.

Umar Mansoor, a commander of the Hakimullah Mehsud faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistani, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Pakistani women light candles during a vigil for victims of the Bacha Khan University attack, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 in Peshawar, Pakistan.

President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan phoned Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday and conveyed his grief and sorrow over the terrorist attack at the Bacha Khan University in Charsada.

“Youths who are studying in non-military institutions, we consider them as builders of the future nation and we consider their safety and protection our duty”, the statement said.