December 16, 2014 was a normal Tuesday morning forPakistanis, but it all changed with a mid-morning terrorist attack on PeshawarArmy School. After seven hours of horrorthe world found that 133 school children and 9 school teachers and staff wereleft martyred along with nine dead terrorists. The Army’s special operations forces took out all the terrorists who hadattacked the school and the collected intelligence that exposed the group thatwas behind the attack—the TTP. The TTPspokesperson had also proudly claimed the attack on children. The reaction from Pakistanis and the worldwas of condemnation and disgust. The Pakistanigovernment reacted by removing the moratorium on execution of terrorists ondeath row. A few of them were hanged indays that followed. In the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, world leadersforcefully condemned the senseless killings. The United States government notonly condemned the attacks but also offered to help. That day, President Obama said, “The UnitedStates condemns in the strongest possible terms today’s horrific attack on theArmy Public School in Peshawar, Pakistan. Our heart and prayers go out to thevictims, their families, and loved ones. By targeting students and teachers inthis heinous attack, terrorists have once again shown their depravity. We standwith the people of Pakistan, and reiterate the commitment of the United Statesto support the government of Pakistan in its efforts to combat terrorism andextremis and to promote peace and stability in the region”.The United States and Pakistan have simplyrefused to bow down to the acts of terror, and our shared resolve and desire todefeat terrorism persuades us to push ahead with our peace mission. We standwith the nation of Pakistan during these testing times; we also fully supporttheir efforts to counter terrorism that stems from extremism and restore peacein the country.
Abdul Quddus
DET - U.S. Central Command