Peshawar attack: COAS vows to root out menace of terrorism

After the deadly Peshawar blast that killed at least 100 people, of which 97 were police officers, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir Friday vowed that the nation would work together for rooting out the menace of terrorism.

In the deadliest attack Pakistan has witnessed in several years, a suicide bomber in a police uniform infiltrated the heavily-guarded compound in Peshawar on Monday and blew himself up during afternoon prayers at a mosque.

During his visit to the Police Lines blast site, the army chief, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police are one of the bravest and have fought as frontline forces against terrorism.

The COAS also appreciated the high morale of the KP Police and law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and paid rich tribute to the martyrs of police who have laid down their lives for the defence of the motherland, according to the ISPR.

"We as a nation together will root out this menace of terrorism till enduring peace and Insha Allah we shall achieve this," the army chief concluded.

In the apex committee meeting held earlier today, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif noted that the 220-million-strong nation had faced the threat of terrorism before and knew how to deal with it.

"The whole nation wants to know how to counter this menace and what measures can be taken to eliminate this new wave of terrorism," the prime minister said.

"We will use all resources in our capacity to fight this menace," he added.

In a statement from the PM's Office later in the day, the apex committee agreed that the centre and provinces would adopt a uniform strategy to counter terrorism and eliminate the internal facilitators of militants.

The meeting directed the concerned authorities to devise an effective strategy in this regard. The meeting also agreed to abolish all the sources assisting the terrorists in the country and direct effective screening, the statement said.

Adopting a zero-tolerance approach against all kinds of terrorism would be the national motto, while implementation of the decisions would be ensured by national consensus, the huddle decided, according to the statement.