Daily Times

PESHAWAR: The second memorial anniversary of the deadly terrorist attack on Army Public School is being observed today (Friday)

Two years ago today, on December 16, 2014,147 people, including 132 schoolchildren, were massacred in the deadliest terrorist attack in Pakistan’s history when terrorists stormed Army Public School on Warsak road Peshawar.

The main memorial ceremony was held at Army Public School in Peshawar earlier today, to pay tribute to the martyrs of the tragedy. Army Chief General Qamar Bajwa, Corps Commander Peshawar Lt Gen Hidayat ur Rehman and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, KPK Police IG Police Nasir Durrani attended the memorial, along with students and families of the martyred.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Bajwa, addressed the ceremony and said that the nation will not rest until the blood of every APS martyr is avenged.

COAS Gen Qamar Bajwa said the martyrs of the APS tragedy can never be forgotten.

“The blood of the martyrs is a loan on us. We will not rest until we pay it back. We will not rest until terrorism is exterminated from our soil,” he said.

The Army Chief said the terrorists had failed to break the nation’s spirit. He added that he keeps pictures of the schoolchildren martyred in the APS attack in his office to keep himself motivated to root out terrorism.

COAS Gen Qamar Bajwa, accompanied by other officials, laid wreaths at Yadgar-e-Shuhda in memory of the martyrs.