“Today we have sunk beneath barbarism. What happened today is way beyond any definition or explanation. I bet it will be forgotten, forgotten like the rest of thousands of people killed in this city. Why? Just because there is a militant hidden in each and every one and it just waits to be unleashed,” Pervez Khan, who is a lecturer at Kohat University of Khyber Pakhtukhwa, said about the Peshawar school attack.
Sanna Ejaz, Peshawar-based human rights defender, said that it’s inhumane to target innocent children. Children are the future for any nation, and targeting them is actually targeting the entire nation.
She held provincial and federal government responsible for the attack, while saying that, “How terrorists made their entry to school despite security measures?”
Muhammad Rafiq, student of the Peshawar University lamented, “This barbaric incident has grieved me. Should our children stop to go to schools? Our government don't have the competency to protect the innocent souls?”
Nabi Jan Orakzai, Peshawar-based Journalist said, “The school incident has really compelled me to weep. I have no words to express solidarity with the deep-grieved families of the innocent souls.”
By Izharullah, Special to Gulf News
‘Not knowing was the hardest part’
A friend of a student holed up in a classroom during the Peshawar school massacre in Pakistan said the “hardest part” was not receiving updates on his situation.
“A Pakistan army official told his parents their son was safe earlier in the day. But we don’t know the latest situation. There are thousands of desperate parents, relatives and friends trying to find out what’s going on,” Waheed Awan told Gulf News over the phone from Peshawar on Tuesday evening.
The 21-year-old university student was speaking as the army operation to secure the school was ending. His friend – Arif Hameed, 16 – was one of 10 pupils seeking refuge in a classroom.
Awan said the parents were told the classroom and a section of the school had been secured by the army, who were searching the rest of the school to ensure there was no other attacker.
He said he was with the boy’s parents at a distance of around a 30-minute drive from the school in Peshawar.
“It’s so noisy we can barely hear ourselves, everyone wants to know about their children. We can’t go past this point, the army won’t allow anyone through because of ongoing operations.
“We’ve had no direct contact with Arif and no updates for a while, it’s obviously a tense and desperate situation.”
By Faisal Masudi, Staff Reporter
Donate blood, tweeps urge
Tweeps urge people in Peshawar to come forth and donate blood to those injured in the Army school attack.
Blogger, writer and youth activist, Naeem Khan was at Combined Military Hospital Peshawar where a majority of the casualities were admitted. Khan told Gulf News: "I reached the CMH Combined Military Hospital at around 4:40 pm, for donating blood to the students . Here in the hospital, I see a very intense situation, everyone is crying, mothers are crying, relatives are sad and waiting. There is grief and sorrow in the atmosphere. Civilian are rushing into the hospital in very large numbers to donate blood."
He added: "I wasn't able to see any of the injured. The hospital staff are busy and trying to clear the donors off, to cope with the rush."
"Personally, I don't know anyone who was injured in the attack, but I witnessed a lot of families mourning and I saw some dead bodies that lay there yet to be identified."
Khan tweeted through his Twitter account asking others in Peshawar to donate blood, he said: "Many friends of mine came to hospital after my tweet, they also contacted me through sms. The response was very good from tweeps who saw my tweet. Many retweeted my tweet."
He added: "In the end the hospital administration requested the crowd to enroll their names and contact numbers for further blood need as by then they had recieved sufficient reserve of blood. The hospital administration didn't allow any media personnel to interview families. Other social activists and humanitarian organizations and volunteers were helping the hospital staff in medical facilities. After I donated blood I returned from the hospital. I pray for all the children."
By Evangeline Elsa/Community Solutions Editor
Blast heard, tweets say
Teenager’s dreams destroyed by Taliban
A 13-year-old with dreams of travelling the world and ruling the skies as a pilot will never realise his hope. Fahad Hussain was shot dead by Taliban militants earlier today with his entire batch of over 100 students, while they were seated in the hall giving their second term exams. Focused on their test papers, it was too late by the time death arrived in the form of militants who appeared to be hell bent on killing. His body has been released to the family. He has an older brother. His parents were in no state to talk, but his uncle Nouman Firdous told Gulf News: “He was a very kush mizaaj [happy] child. He would play all day, was extremely masoom [innocent]. He was obsessed with the becoming a pilot.” Firdous found it difficult to continue speaking. The house is in mourning, as visitors come to pay their respects.
By Anupa Kurian, Evangeline Elsa and Sanya Nayeem
Tweeter shares aftermath of Peshawar attack
Why?
It’s the question twitterverse is asking, following the horrific attack on a school in Peshawar earlier today. At least 126 people, most of them children, were killed, with hundreds taken hostage.
Naveed Ahmed Khan, a lecturer at a university in Peshawar, who goes by the twitter handle @NavidAhmadKhan, was at Govt. Lady Reading Hospital immediately after the attack.
He spoke with Gulf News about the aftermath.
“When I heard the news in my office, I set out for the hospital because it felt like my own kids were killed. [I] was at the hospital the whole day. Donated blood and my heart was bleeding because I'm a teacher myself and could see myself there.”
The scene at the hospital was grim and chaotic.
He said: “The mood was very tense and clearly very painful. Could see a lot of school children being brought in… approximately a hundred at one hospital. Some seriously injured and some dead.”
“I spoke to a father and all he could tell me was that his only child was his world. He doesn't want anything anymore but an answer to why his little one got killed.”
Khan saw a number of parents at the hospital and outside its premises. He posted a picture of a list of identified bodies, which went viral on twitter.
He said: “Most of the parents have identified their children now. And the mood is very sad. Very mellow atmosphere. They were all asking one thing. "Why these school children? Why are you killing them?"
He confirmed that military personnel were brought in with injuries to the hospital, as well.
Khan commended the people of Pakistan for showing solidarity by arriving at the hospital to donate blood for the seriously injured.
He said: “Lady Reading is the largest government hospital in Peshawar city. It can handle a huge number of patients. Being a teaching hospital there are a lot of doctors. Since we have got used to these blasts we are always ready to donate blood. This time, it looked like the whole city had come down to donate blood.”
However, the future seems bleak in this time of tragedy, for Khan.
He said: “The thing is, we have been victims of so many such incidents that it seems like a normal thing now. We have become cold hearted and immune. I'm just so sad to think what would these little children who survived today grow up with? These memories won't let them live full lives.
We are a nation where we don't even know why we are being killed. These little kids were not terrorists, then why kill them?”
By Sanya Nayeem, Deputy Readers Editor
High-security alert
Dr Imtiaz Khan from Govt Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar Pakistan, reports: “ The whole area has been placed under a high security alert. There are personnel everywhere because there is a lot of tension. There are frequent checks being done. There are parents every where. Most of the injured from the school were first taken to the Military Hospital and the overflow of patients brought to Lady Reading Hospital. So, many parents are still trying to locate the bodies of their children, or if they are alive to find which of the two hospitals they are at.
“We received over 75 patients… the latest figure we have from hospital records is 34 died, and nearly 45 injured are still being treated. A few have been moved to the Outpatient section, but many are still in critical condition. Of these about 19 are school students and the rest include teachers and other civilians from the school.
“ A lot of people have come forward to donate blood and everybody is doing their best to help.”
- By Anupa Kurian/Readers Editor
Twitter Conversation:
My Friend's little cousin Anfaal in grade 7th performed a feat of bravery
His exact story: We were sitting silent - it was 4th period. We were studying Urdu and at 10:30 we suddenly heard firing. I thought it was an evacuation drill, but the chaos immediately started and it was horrible.
After first few bullets, I took the cellphone of one of my wounded friends and called my father. We all went outside. Some students were shot in the face, some were shot in the gut, some in the hips, and some in legs.
2nd year students were badly injured. Approximately 60 students hid in our classroom. We laid down on the floor and hid under tables. We were reciting Kalmaah and asking for forgiveness. I thought I was dead for sure. More than half of the students were wounded. Then the terrorists went to the 2nd floor class and almost sprayed the bullets into the class.Meanwhile a soldier came in to evacuate us all, I found a flat stone, placed it on the bullet wound of one of my injured friends, took my muffler, wrapped it around the wound and helped him escape.
All I saw was dead bodies and intestines.
I heard phrases like, "too much blood I can't move."
One of them said, "I have been hit in the spine."
Some encouraging others. Some horrified.
Madness indeed.Courtesy AAMIR KHAN my cousin
- Dubai-based Asadjan sent us this through Facebook
