Remembering Young Martyrs

Families of the APS victims believe 2014 attack was a watershed moment in Pakistan’s history

PESHAWAR: The Pakistani nation can never forget the 16 December terror attack on Peshawar’s Army Public School (APS) eight years ago. At least 125 students and 20 teachers were killed when the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants stormed the school premises in 2014. The incident not only triggered stories of unmatched sacrifices made by some brave teachers and students, it also caused a radical transformation in Pakistan’s policy narrative on Islamist terrorism.

The horrifying memories of the massacre still haunt the affected families that lost their children, and those who survived but saw the brutalities with their own eyes, and which still linger in their memories. But there is also evidence of resilience, and even valour, among those survivors, underlining a determination in them to stand up against terrorism.

In recent interviews with Bol News, the APS survivors (or ghazis as they have come to be called) and families of those lost in the massacre, though still having wet eyes, invariably expressed their resolve to get over the tragedy by defeating the forces of darkness. Many believe the tragedy led them onto a path of combating the terrorists’ guns with the power of the pen.

Though the affected families are still demanding justice – their demands to punish the perpetrators as well as those whose negligence or cooperation made the massacre possible are yet to be met – but a majority of them are confident that terrorism can be effectively beaten by the power of education.

One such survivor is Andaleeb Aftab, a teacher at APS and the mother of Huzaifa, a student that was killed during the attack. She was on the APS premises when the attack took place. She survived, and continues with her teaching job at APS. She told Bol News that she feels she is arming hundreds of Huzaifas with the knowledge of science and arts to defeat the forces of darkness that want to deprive the Pakistani nation of education.

“When I heard about Huzaifa’s martyrdom, I was injured myself and was in ambulance,” she said. “I decided there and then that I must carry forward the mission of the martyrs. So, I never quit my job at the APS. Huzaifa wanted to be a scientist, and I am preparing scores of scientists every year. They are all my kids.”

She said she never felt any mental stress while moving around on the APS premises. In fact, it made her feel as though the dead students were still around and kicking. “I can smell the fragrance of their bodies, and it acts as a constant reminder that I must continue with the mission of nurturing our youth, and keep lit the candle the forces of darkness want to blow out. I am proud that I’m the mother of a martyr.”

Umme Amaara, in her teens, was in the APS’s toddlers’ branch when the attack took place. Her two brothers – Norrullah Durrani who was in Class-9, and Saifullah Durrani in Class-8 – were both killed. She told Bol News that her parents had wanted both of them to be doctors. Now that they are no more, she said, she plans to fulfill her parents’ dreams.

Ammara’s mother, Falak Naz, while narrating her ordeal, said, “both my sons are always by my side. I can’t forget their love and warmth.” She said it has been eight years, “but it’s the same black day for us. We can’t forget the day my sons were martyred. But I am happy that my daughters are continuing with the mission of getting education, and that’s the real message to terrorists. Though I can’t feel the physical presence of my sons, I see them in my daughters.”

Muneeb, who was a student at APS, survived the terror attack, but his brother Shaheer was killed. He told Bol News that ever since the tragedy, he has developed an attitude whereby he pursues not just his own aims but also those of his late brother. He is now studying Artificial Intelligence and Design, which he feels will help him fulfil his goals in life.

Muneeb’s father, Mohammad Tahir, is meanwhile pursuing the APS massacre case which is still pending at the Supreme Court. “My martyred son is always with us,” he said. “And I am ready to sacrifice my other son as well as I love my country and I am loyal to it. But I request our rulers to please deliver justice to the APS parents. Our case is lying with the Supreme Court, and we hope the chief justice will make sure that those responsible for killing our innocent children are brought to justice.”

Abu Bakkar Waseem, a Mathematics teacher who had received three bullets in his body during the attack, recalls that he was in the staff room when the terrorists broke in and opened fire. “I was hit when I moved to provide cover to some students who were present in the office. As I fell down, the terrorists left. I was then looked after by the students until the rescue teams arrived some hours later,” he said.

He says he’s still confused as to how someone claiming to be acting in the name of Islam can attack kids and teachers who are just working with pens in their hands to gain knowledge, as was advised by none other than the Prophet of Islam, Hazrat Muhammad (peace be upon him).”

Subsequent to the attack, he got into studying motivational literature and religious books to come out of the stress, and it reinforced his view that education must not stop in any school, madrassa or any other institution. “This incident motivated me to write motivational books and literature, and started to counsel the survivors of the tragedy to help them carry on with life through those traumatic days. We fought it out bravely in the end,” he said.

Zahoor, a teacher by profession who lost his son Uzair, a Grade-9 student, in the attack, says the “sacrifices of our kids have led us onto a clear path of defeating terrorism by all means, otherwise we will suffer more. The enemies of education are not harming individuals, they are out to cripple an entire generation. But we have shown that we stand firm to defeat that mindset. Just notice how education is spreading in the tribal areas, right at the doorsteps of those terrorists.”

Ghazi Sameen was in Grade-7 when he was injured during the APS attack. He has since completed his Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree and is in the real estate business. Recalling the attack, he says it was “a huge trauma no doubt, but it helped me realise that while tragedies happen, we have to keep moving forward and thereby defeat the intentions of those who want us to be deprived.”

Many students and parents that suffered during the APS attack believe that the sacrifices made by the APS students and teachers led to the anti-terror National Action Plan (NAP), drawn by the then Nawaz Sharif government, and subsequent military action against terrorists in Waziristan region. This, they believe, created an anti-terrorist narrative that prevails across today’s society.

Acknowledging this, Tufail Ahmad, who lost a son during the APS attack, says it was a turning point in Pakistan’s history as the state went all-out against terrorists to wipe them out.

“The real victory and its direction were set after the APS incident,” he said. “Those who had been sympathetic to the extremist mindset were now openly opposing it, because killing unarmed kids in the name of religion was seen by everyone as unjustified, and today everyone knows why the terrorists did what they did.”