Massacre of school children: From Beslan School Russia to Army Public School Peshawar

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Killing over 125 school children, mostly sons and daughters of officials of the Pakistan Army, from the Peshawar cantonment area showed again how dangerous radicalism and purist Islamic thoughts are. There are over 500 Army Public Schools spread all over Pakistan, and nobody knows what the next target will be for Islamists who want to take revenge on the Pakistani nation.

During the killing of innocent children, mostly under the age of 16, the spokesman of Taliban Umar (Omar) Khorasani was in contact with international news agency, Reuters, and said to a reporter that their (Taliban) action was in retaliation for the ongoing operations in the North Waziristan tribal area. He said the Taliban had targeted the school because the “Army is targeting our families and females” in their military operations. This is same justification that is being given by Islamist militants while killing school and college children in Kenya, Nigeria, and other places in Africa. This is the same narrative that came out from Islamist extremists after the biggest massacre of school children in Beslan– a small town in Russia’s North Ossetia on September 1, 2004. On that day, 186 school children were killed, while a total number people slain was 300.

There are many links between the Beslan school tragedy and the Army School Peshawar massacre. It is believed by international intelligence networks that Chechen Islamist leaders were roaming about and living in Peshawar and adjoining areas when the Chechen Islamist group planned and executed the massacre at the Beslan school 10 years ago. Celebrating the first day of the school year turned into a nightmare for 1,128 Beslan children, teachers, and parents who were taken hostage by terrorists. For three days, hostages were held at gunpoint and denied water, food, or medical help, until the captors detonated explosives inside the school. After that, security forces intervened to free the hostages. Islamist militants of Chechnya also planted IEDs on pavements, around walls, and in the main grounds as did by the Taliban today in Peshawar. This global brand of Islamist militancy and terrorism has similar threads, techniques, and justifications for killing innocent people and has the same goal to achieve— an Islamic state on the patrons of Saudi Arabia.

Nurpashi Kulaev, the only surviving terrorist from the group that attacked the school in Beslan 10 years ago, has no regrets and said in a recently broadcasted documentary:

“I don’t feel guilty that women and children died. But I can say neither I nor anyone else could have saved them, because the decisions were made by other people.”

In Islamist terrorism, executers (militants who are foot soldiers and do actions and kill people) are not decision makers because decisions are made by some “unknown Islamist leaders,” and then these decisions are transferred to executers through another channel, therefore, most executers do not know who made the decisions. This same design is being followed by Taliban in Pakistan. The Taliban leadership is sitting in the Kunar valley of Afghanistan from where decisions are being made, but nobody knows who is making these decisions. There are reports that Mullah Fazlullah is just a symbolic personality while decisions are made by his Afghan handlers having direct links to Indian intelligence networking. However, India always denies this while the Afghanistan government that is backed by ISAF forces has failed to take action against Mullah Fazlullah and his handlers.

Nurpashi Kulaev (the only surviving terrorist from the group that attacked the school in Beslan 10 years ago) also said in his latest interview that terrorists did not want to kill small children, but rather children above the age of 16, and if small children were dead, that was just because of the collateral damage factor. The same justification came from the Taliban today as Muhammad Umar Khorasani said:

“Our suicide bombers have entered the school; they have instructions not to harm the children, but to target army personnel. The militants, however, see older students (above 16 years of age, that is puberty age according to Islam) as legitimate targets for their attack.”

Nurpashi Kulaev remembered that they were in contact with the international media during their action as the Taliban was in contact with the international media.

Russia as a nation has not forgotten this horrific incident, and there is an annual mourning in this area and a monument was constructed and the building of school is preserved (not changed and still showing the horrific attack impressions). In the same way, the nation of Pakistan will never forget this incident, but its school building will be renovated leaving no signs of this incomprehensible attack, because “Pakistan is a different nation.”

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