Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Sunday said the government was committed to fully implement the National Action Plan (NAP) to get rid of all forms of terrorism, violence and hatred.

The prime minister posted his views on his twitter account as the whole nation observed fourth anniversary of the Army Public School (APS) attack. “Today, as we remember and pray for the survivors and the victims’ families, especially the parents of the Peshawar APS terrorist attack, my govt commits itself to fully implementing NAP to rid Pakistan of all forms of terrorism, violence and hatred,” he posted on his Twitter account.

Separately in a message issued on the occasion, Prime Minister Imran Khan reiterated that the government would transform the country into such abode where there would be no place for religious, lingual, caste or creed based sectarianism, extremism and violence. He reiterated that education was the only weapon with which they could defeat extremism and terrorism permanently.

He said December 16 reminded the nation of that tragic day on which the terrorists, with utter disregard for the humanitarian and religious principles, targeted the innocent students of the Army Public School who had arrived school to seek education with a hope for bright future. This heart wrenching incident not only inflicted pain and misery on the whole nation but also paved way for the unity and solidarity among the ranks of the nation against terrorism, he added.

The prime minister said with Allah Almighty’s support and nation’s backing, the valiant armed forces of Pakistan and other law enforcement agencies, through operations Zarb-e-Azb and Raddul Fasad, accomplished an unprecedented decisive action against terrorism. He said by sacrificing their innocent blood, the APS students united the nation forever against a heartless enemy who was a blot on the humanity and worst manifestation of inhumanity.

The prime minister observed that the memories of APS tragedy would always remain alive. The whole nation shared the pain and suffering of all the grieving parents, he added.

The prime minister said the nation had paid huge price in the war on terror. “Despite giving huge sacrifices in term of human and financial losses, still if anyone leveled accusation against Pakistan, or blamed it, they were reminded that in this global war, the massive price was paid by the personnel of our armed forces, law enforcement agencies, civilian and innocent souls,” he said, and reiterated that despite all these huge losses and sufferings, as a nation, they were committed to the national, regional and global peace.

He also paid tribute to the gallant armed forces of Pakistan, law enforcement agencies and all those institutions who had sacrificed in the war on terror. The best way to pay tributes to the martyrs was to reiterate the resolve for the sublime objective for which they had laid down their lives, he stressed.

Published in Daily Times, December 17^th2018.