The ruthless terrorist assault on a school run by Pakistan army in Peshawar’s Warsak road area happened in the early hours of December 16, 2014, when some of the students were assembled in the auditorium to learn first aid from a Pakistan Army colonel. Seven heavily armed Taliban gunmen disguised as security personnel entered the school through the rear wall, wearing uniforms of Frontier Constabulary (FC).

The attack is unique  and it has shaken Pakistan and the entire world . The Taliban have targeted students in Pakistan on numerous occasions, but this is by far their deadliest attack on a school, that specifically targeted children . Since 2010, there have been at least four attacks on school buses – including the one in which Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head in Swat in 2012. There have been at least three Taliban attacks on schools this year, with one fatality.[1] However, this time terrorists have killed 142, including 132 students, the school’s principal Miss Tahira Aziz, and teachers in Army Public School (APS), Peshawar .[2]

Pakistan army runs and manages Army Public Schools and Colleges System (APSACS). A total of 128 schools operate under the jurisdiction of the APSACS Secretariat through a setup of 11 regional offices.[3] According to an Urdu newspaper, the daily Jang, there were about 2,000 students present in APS Peshawar at the time of attack.

Motives

Soon after the attack TTP central (headed by Mullah Fazllullah) spokesperson Muhammad Umar Khurasani claimed responsibility for the attack, “ the attack on APS is the revenge of ongoing military operation[4] ‘Zarb-e-Azb’, started June 15. The Taliban vowed to carry out more such attacks if the military operation is not terminated in North Waziristan agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).  The spokesperson added, “We selected the army’s school for the attack because the government is targeting our families and females. We want them to feel pain”.[5]

Since the start of  Operation Zarb-e-Azb this is the first major terrorist attack aimed directly at the  children of army personnel.  The purpose of this attack was to strike fear and demoralize the men and women of the armed forces, and Pakistanis in general.   This is one of the worst examples of psychological warfare waged by the Taliban against the armed forces. Meanwhile, Zabiullah Mujahid a spokesperson for Afghan Taliban condemned the attack on its official website, saying, “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan expresses its condolences over the incident and mourns with the families of killed children. The intentional killing of innocent people, women and children goes against the principles of Islam and every Islamic government and movement must adhere to this fundamental essence”.[6]

Rescue Operations

A heavy contingent of security forces arrived at the school shortly after the attack began and launched the rescue operation. The attack started at about 10:30am local time (05:00 GMT), military officials said.[7]

Around 960 students and staffers were rescued, while the SSG commandoes also found 23 children hiding behind the school building after the operation.  Initially, the Special Services Group (SSG)  commandos and police elite force personnel had launched a combined operation, but the different coloured uniforms only caused confusion so the operation was called off and the second one was launched by SSG commandos around 3:30pm and lasted until 5:30pm.[8]

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif supervised the rescue operation carried out by the SSG of the Pakistan army. He said, “We are extremely saddened, but our resolve has taken new height. We will continue to go after the inhuman beasts, their facilitators till their final elimination”.[9] Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also arrived in Peshawar to monitor the situation. PM called the massacre by TTP a “national tragedy”.

A psychological front:

The militants found the one target in which all the fears of Pakistan could coalesce: young children in school, vulnerable, helpless and whose deaths will strike a collective psychological blow that the country will take a long time to recover from, if ever.[10] While Pakistan army is conducting a successful military operation in FATA, where more than 1,200 terrorists have been killed and in the meantime thwarting attacks on its installations by taking extraordinary  steps to enhance its security. The terrorists, unable to orchestrate attacks on security infrastructure, are now resorting to killing children mainly to weaken the resolve of army, government and the nation as a whole against terrorism.

PM Nawaz Sharif has approved abolishment of moratorium on the execution of death penalty in terrorism-related cases, an official from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif´s office said.[11] It is reported in the electronic media that the process of executing terrorists will start with in next 48 hours. Pakistan army also bombarded suspected militant hideouts in retaliatory airstrikes.

Conclusion:

The gruesome attack by TTP on innocent schoolchildren was in fact a tactical operation in their psychological warfare launched against the state of Pakistan to weaken its resolve in the fight against terrorism.  The long term efficacy of this terror campaign remains to be seen.

Abbas Ahmad, CRSS Research Fellow

[1] Pakistan: Sickening Taliban school attack highlights vulnerability of civilians, Amnesty International, December 17, 2014, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/pakistan-sickening-taliban-school-attack-highlights-vulnerability-civilians-2014-12-16?linkId=11180560 (accessed December 17, 2014)

[2] Daily Jang, December 17, 2014

[3] Army Public Schools & Colleges System Secretariat, Vision, http://www.apsacssectt.edu.pk/aboutus.html (accessed December 17, 2014)

[4] Mullah Fazlullah group claims responsibility for Peshawar carnage, The News, December 17, 2014

[5] Riaz Ahmad, “Our darkest hour, The Express Tribune, December 17, 2014

[6] Remarks of Spokesman of Islamic Emirate regarding the incident at a Peshawar school, http://www.shahamat-english.com/index.php/paighamoona/51436-remarks-of-spokesman-of-islamic-emirate-regarding-the-incident-at-a-peshawar-school (accessed December 17, 2014)

[7] Asad Hashim, “Analysis: Peshawar school attack, Aljazeera, December 17, 2014 http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/12/fighters-attack-army-run-school-pakistan-20141216742794184.html (accessed December 17, 2014)

[8] Ahmad, Our darkest hour

[9] Terrorists are enemies of humanity, The Express Tribune, December 17, 2014

[10] New blood-soaked benchmark, Dawn, December 17, 2014

[11] The News, December 17, 2014