A Pakistan military court has awarded death sentence to six “hardcore terrorists” involved in a deadly attack on an army-run school in Peshawar, it was announced said on Thursday.
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“Today the sentences of death have been confirmed by the Chief of Army Staff”.
A statement on the Pakistan military’s website said seven militants were found guilty of links to the attack – only one had been given a life sentence instead of the death penalty.
The attack on the school in Peshawar, in which almost all the victims were schoolchildren, shocked Pakistanis and led the country to lift a moratorium on executions in place since 2008.
The government statement said: “The convicts were given fair trial by following all the legal formalities and offering/providing them legal aid and defence counsels”, adding that each “admitted his offences before the Magistrate and the trial court”.
Another convict in the case, Kafayatullah, has been awarded life imprisonment.
In the attack on the Army Public School in December, explosions and gunfire rang out as seven armed men rampaged through the school in one of the bloodiest events in Pakistan’s history.
He was also involved in abetting deaths of two Colonels and a civilian Director of National Development Complex (NDC).
Whereas, Civilian Taj Muhammad alias Rizwan S/O Altaf Khan was an active member of CivilianMuhammad Farhan alias Ali alias Abbas alias AijazQadri was an active member of Jaish-e-Muhammad. The convict was an active member of TTP. Islamabad and Kabul have long accused each other of sheltering militants involved in cross-border attacks. He was tried on 2 charges and awarded death sentence.
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It also amended the constitution to allow for the establishment of military courts to try terror suspects.
