Officials have hanged four men in Pakistan who were involved in a school massacre that killed 151 people, most of whom were children. The attack shocked the country and led to new laws to speed up terrorism cases.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/S. Akber
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The four men were hanged early Wednesday at a civilian-run jail in the northeastern Pakistani city of Kohat, security officials within the country said.
The men, all said to be members of the Toheedwal Jihad Group, were convicted of taking part in a massacre last December that killed 151 people, including 134 children, at a school in the city of Peshawar.
The attack shocked the country and sparked a crackdown on extremism. This included the resumption of the use of capital punishment after a six-year moratorium. Since then, according to a report in November by Amnesty International, Pakistan has carried out nearly 300 executions.
Wednesday's hangings were the first executions carried out in connection with the massacre that took place nearly one year ago. The six gunmen who led the attack were killed. These are also the first executions of civilians by Pakistan's military court, established by constitutional amendment in the massacre's aftermath.
Pakistan's army announced in August that it sentenced six militants to the death, and the army chief issued a "black warrant" on Monday announcing that executions were imminent. The four men to be hanged were given a final meeting with their families on Tuesday night.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif stated earlier this month that they deserved "no mercy."
Over 8,000 prisoners are on death row in Pakistan, according to the country's Interior Ministry.
The Peshawar massacre
Taliban insurgents killed at least 140 people, most of them children, after storming an army-run school in Pakistan. DW takes a look at how developments unfolded in one of the country's bloodiest attacks in recent years.
Image: picture alliance/ZUMA Press
Chaos
About 500 students from grades 1-10 were believed to be inside the school when the attack began in the morning hours of Tuesday, December 16, with the gunmen entering the school and shooting at random. Many of them were held hostage by the gunmen. Explosions were still being heard in the afternoon as security forces engaged the militants.
Image: Reuters/K. Parvez
Rising death toll
At least 140 people were killed in the attack, most of them children, according to the authorities.Those freed by the security forces were rushed to hospital. According to eyewitness accounts, the gunmen used pupils as human shields. The death toll is expected to rise even further as many of the wounded are in critical condition.
Image: Reuters/K. Parvez
All militants killed
Six gunmen wearing paramilitary uniforms had burst into the school building in the early morning hours. The area was quickly cordoned off by the authorities and helicopters were flying overhead. Security forces then engaged for several hours in an intense gun fight with the attackers, all of whom were reportedly killed.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Sajjad
Examinations
The attackers targeted the school while exams were taking place. A student who identified himself as Shuja told Samaa TV that they were taking an examination when firing started. They were told by the teacher to lie down on the floor. He said they remained on floor for about one hour when army soldiers came and told them to go out.
Image: Reuters/K. Parvez
A military-run school
The school attacked is part of the Army Public Schools and Colleges System, which runs 146 schools nationwide for the children of military personnel and civilians. Its students range in age from around 10 to 18. The schools educate the children of both officers and non-commissioned soldiers and army wives often teach in them.
Image: Reuters/K. Parvez
Retaliation
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in retaliation for the army's offensive against militants in the North Waziristan tribal area close to Peshawar. It is believed that some of the region's most feared militants use North Waziristan as a launching pad for attacks within Pakistan as well as against NATO forces in neighboring Afghanistan.
'A national tragedy'
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif described the attack a "national tragedy unleashed by savages." "These were my children. This is my loss. This is the nation's loss," he was quoted as saying, adding to he would continue to fight terrorism until "it is rooted out from our land." The PM then set off to Peshawar to oversee the rescue operation.
Image: Reuters
International condemnation
"It is a senseless act of unspeakable brutality that has claimed lives of the most innocent of human beings - young children in their school," said Indian PM Narendra Modi. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier described the attack as a cruel act of cowardice which "surpasses everything that Pakistan, which has been subjected to terrorism and violence for years, has known to date."
Image: Reuters
Malala: 'We will never be defeated'
The violence also underscored the vulnerability of Pakistani schools. Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by a Taliban gunman for daring to speak up about girls' rights, said she was "heartbroken by this senseless and cold blooded act of terror." "I, along with millions of others around the world, mourn these children, my brothers and sisters - but we will never be defeated."
