Peshawar Siege was executed after meticulous planning
Peshawar, Dec 18: The suicide squad, comprising six men, were not alone, there were more behind them who ordered the reckless shooting of small children at the Peshawar army school. Right from the handler to the spokesperson to the chief of Taliban, everyone was involved in the mass slaughter.
They started with the auditorium, which was stuffed with students undergoing a training program to save lives. Once they fell their bodies, one of the Talibanis called their handler and said,"We have killed all of the children in the auditorium," the militant, later identified by the military as Abuzar, told his handler. "What do we do now?"
"Wait for the army to arrive," came the reply. "Kill them, then blow yourself up." And the rampage continued for eight hours. The conversation was intercepted by the Pakistani intelligence.
A death trail followed in the Principal's office where the charred remains of Tahira Qazi and two other boys were found. It is believed that Qazi was slain when she tried to save her students. The greatest carnage happened in the assembly hall where more than 100 bodies were recovered, many piled one on top of another. Evidently, the students tried to hide from the invadors, but were singled out and shot in the head.
The lone army man who was giving a demonstration in the main stage of the auditorium was killed. Officers and eye-witnesses said that teachers tried to intervene, requesting the assaulters to spare the children; even they were executed.
The rampage was intercepted by a few minutes when Pakistan army's elite Special Service Group entered the school when the gunmen retreated in the central administrative block and showered bullets at them. That is where the Siege ended. Five of the militants exploded their suicide vests there while the rest two charged the commandos who had taken positions outside the building. These two them exploded their vests sending sharpnels into trees and walls and wounding seven commandos, one of whom received serious injuries to the face.
The Army was shaken too, as evident from their reactions when they entered the building. Some of them broke down at the site of the dead children. Parents sloganeered against the Taliban and blamed the army.
What
is
this
army
for?"
shouted
one
man
at
the
city's
main
Lady
Reading
hospital,
where
he
had
come
to
collect
the
body
of
his
grandson.
The
suicide
squad,
comprising
six
men,
were
not
alone,
there
were
more
behind
them
who
ordered
the
reckless
shooting
of
small
children
at
the
Peshawar
army
school.
Right
from
the
handler
to
the
spokesperson
to
the
chief
of
Taliban,
everyone
was
involved
in
the
mass
slaughter.
They started with the auditorium, which was stuffed with students undergoing a training program to save lives. Once they fell their bodies, one of the Talibanis called their handler and said,"We have killed all of the children in the auditorium," the militant, later identified by the military as Abuzar, told his handler. "What do we do now?"
"Wait for the army to arrive," came the reply. "Kill them, then blow yourself up." And the rampage continued for eight hours. The conversation was intercepted by the Pakistani intelligence.
A death trail followed in the Principal's office where the charred remains of Tahira Qazi and two other boys were found. It is believed that Qazi was slain when she tried to save her students. The greatest carnage happened in the assembly hall where more than 100 bodies were recovered, many piled one on top of another. Evidently, the students tried to hide from the invadors, but were singled out and shot in the head.
"Where are their atom bombs and airplanes now?" he said. "They were of no use if they cannot protect us from death in our daily lives."
The Army was overflooded with regret and remorse too. An officer said that the school had reported a Taliban threat in August. Some teachers also worried about the vulnerability of teh school to Taliban attack, but nothing was done.
OneIndia News