ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan appeared before the country’s top court on Wednesday, promising to take action against negligent officials whose carelessness facilitated the massacre of young children at the Army Public School (APS) in Peshawar, said information minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain after the court hearing.
A group of heavily armed militants belonging to the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) faction entered the APS building in a high security area of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on December 16, 2014, and killed about 130 children and 17 staff members.
The Supreme Court of Pakistan, which has been hearing a case related to the incident, summoned the prime minister to question if his government had acted against those involved in the attack and those responsible for providing security.
The prime minister during the court hearing said there was “no holy cow” in the country and said he would take action against anyone named by the court, reported the local media.
Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed said action was taken against low-ranking individuals such as soldiers and watchmen while senior officials were still enjoying their perks and privileges.
Justice Ijazul Ahsan, another member of the bench, maintained the satisfaction of the parents who had lost their children in the attack was necessary.
“The main handlers [responsible for the attack] have already been eliminated,” the information minister told journalists after attending the court hearing. “The [Supreme Court] has now asked us to determine those who had moral obligations. We have a [judicial] commission’s report on this. So, we will complete [our inquiry] and present [its findings] to the court in four weeks.”
Pakistan’s former chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar had appointed a judicial commission in October 2018 to determine the facts related to the massacre. After about two years, the commission submitted its report in July 2020 in the apex court which included the statements of victims’ families.
The country’s interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said the prime minister had “explained the situation” to the top court.
“The Supreme Court has given us four weeks … The prime minister has assured [the judges] that the government will expose those who were responsible, be it an interior minister, people from higher [intelligence] agencies or anyone else,” he said.
In a previous court hearing regarding the case, bereaved families of APS children had complained that the country’s leadership had not taken serious steps against those who were responsible for security negligence.
The top court summoned the prime minister only days after the government announced it had reached a “complete cease-fire” agreement with the TTP.
Thousands of Pakistanis lost their lives in violence generated by TTP militants in the last two decades and the group has accepted responsibility for several high-profile attacks, including an assassination attempt on activist and now Nobel prize winner Malala Yousafzai and the attack on APS in Peshawar.
Pakistan top court questions PM over peace talks with militants behind 2014 school massacre
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Pakistan top court questions PM over peace talks with militants behind 2014 school massacre
- Pakistani Taliban killed 134 school children at the Army Public School in Peshawar in 2014
- Parents of children tell court government had not taken serious steps to provide them justice
Qatar, Pakistan resolve to boost strategic, economic cooperation at Doha talks
- Both countries urge dialogue on Afghanistan amid renewed border tensions between Islamabad and Kabul
- Discussions focus on bilateral trade and investment, energy, defense, manpower and labor and culture
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Qatar on Tuesday agreed to deepen their strategic and economic cooperation during high-level talks between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Sharif’s office said.
Sharif visited Qatar along with a high-level delegation on the invitation of Qatari emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The Pakistani premier also held meetings with Qatar’s trade and defense ministers to discuss cooperation in various domains.
The visit came at a time when Pakistan is seeking closer economic engagement with Gulf partners amid its broader push to stabilize the economy and attract investment, while maintaining security and defense cooperation with key regional states.
During their meeting in Doha, PM Sharif and Qatar’s Sheikh Mohammed discussed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and international developments, according to the Pakistan prime minister’s office.
“They reaffirmed the strong brotherly relations between Pakistan and Qatar and expressed satisfaction at the growing momentum in political, economic and institutional ties,” Sharif’s office said.
“Discussions focused on enhancing cooperation in the fields of trade and investment, energy, defense, manpower and labor and culture, with both sides stressing the importance of their task force to accelerate cooperation in all these areas.”
Pakistan and Qatar maintain strong trade and investment ties. In 2022, the office of Qatar’s emir said the Qatar Investment Authority planned to invest $3 billion in Pakistan, targeting sectors including transport, aviation, education, health, media, technology and labor.
Nearly 300,000 Pakistanis live and work in Qatar, according to Pakistan’s foreign office, with many employed in health, education, engineering and public services, as well as construction and transport. The two countries engage through forums such as the Bilateral Political Consultations and the Joint Ministerial Commission.
Sharif said he had productive discussions with Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, on how the two sides could transform their brotherly ties into mutually beneficial economic relationships.
“We also took stock of the regional situation,” he said on X. “Pakistan and Qatar will continue to work together for peace and stability in the region and beyond.”
DIALOGUE WITH AFGHANISTAN
Earlier, Sharif and Qatar’s Deputy PM Sheikh Saoud Al-Thani discussed the situation in Afghanistan and called for dialogue to support regional stability.
The meeting took place amid renewed tensions after Islamabad carried out airstrikes last week on what it described as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) targets inside Afghanistan. Kabul said the strikes killed civilians and vowed to respond to what it called a violation of its sovereignty.
“Regional developments were also discussed, in particular the situation in Iran and Afghanistan,” Sharif’s office said in a statement. “Both sides emphasized the importance of dialogue, de-escalation and collective efforts to promote peace and stability in the region.”
This was the second time in less than six months that Pakistan conducted airstrikes in Afghanistan. The last strikes triggered heavy, weeklong clashes between the neighbors along their border before Qatar and Turkiye mediated a ceasefire between them in Oct. last year.
Separately, Sharif held meetings with Qatar’s State Minister for Trade Dr. Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Sayed and a delegation of the Qatar Businessmen Association (QBA), highlighting Pakistan’s investment-friendly reforms.
He invited QBA members to explore opportunities in infrastructure, logistics, energy, agriculture, technology and export-oriented manufacturing, his office said.
