ISLAMABAD (XINHUA) – In the wake of the recent deadly suicide bombing in Pakistan’s northwest Peshawar city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif yesterday called for national unity to fight the menace of terrorism.
Chairing the Apex Committee meeting in Peshawar, convened after the attack on a mosque in the city that killed over 100 people, Sharif said the stakeholders should work together against terrorism.
“It is the need of the hour that provinces and the centre along with the leaderships of political parties take ownership and shun their differences… We should unite and tackle this (terrorism),” he said.
The prime minister said KP province recently witnessed a fresh spate of terror incidents, and therefore needed capacity-building of its security departments, adding that maximum support will be provided to the counter-terrorism department of KP police to strengthen its capabilities to combat terrorism.
“In the recent attack in Peshawar, the terrorist managed to breach the security check post and reach the mosque. We should not feel hesitant in admitting the facts and faults… The occurrence of the incident due to security lapses will be probed,” Sharif said. A full-fledged investigation has been launched into the suicide attack, and the culprits behind the terrorist incident would be taken to task soon, he added.
The prime minister said military operations in the past successfully wiped out terrorism from the country, vowing the Pakistani government would collectively overcome the on-going challenge as well. “Many people lost their lives confronting terror. Our police and armed forces gave huge sacrifices. Our citizens were on the frontline. Their sacrifices would not be wasted,” he said.
On Monday, a powerful blast ripped through a crowded mosque in Peshawar, killing at least 100 worshippers and wounding over 200 others. Pakistani police said they found a network of terrorists behind the deadly suicide bombing.
