APS martyrs remembered: Dr Yasmin says martyred teachers and students will remain heroes of the nation

LAHORE: Glowing tributes were paid in various ceremonies to around 132 school children and 17 staff members who were martyred in terrorist attack on the Army Public School (APS) Peshawar on the 7th anniversary of tragic incident on Thursday.

Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid said here on Thursday that martyrs of Army Public School (APS) tragedy will always be remembered. On the eve of 7th anniversary of the tragic incident, the health minister said this is day to remember the sacrifices of children. She said that terrorists cannot break the resilience of this nation and martyred teachers and students will remain heroes of the nation. She said terrorist networks have been broken down with Operation Zarb-i-Azb and Operation Raddul Fasad. She said Pakistan Army is the symbol of country's unity, its safety and security.

A seminar titled “APS Massacre: A soul stirring tribulation” was held at GCU. Maj-Gen Syed Najeeb Ahmed, the Commander of Army Aviation Pakistan, addressed the seminar which was attended by a large number of students and faculty members at Bukhari Auditorium. GCU VC Prof Dr Asghar Zaidi moderated the event.

Syed Najeeb said so far more than 375,000 intelligence-based counter terrorism operations have been conducted in which many soldiers sacrificed their lives.

Prof Zaidi said time could never heal or make us forget the school children who went to school and never came back. The seminar was followed by an on-campus walk to pay tribute to the martyrs of Army Public School, Peshawar.

PU’s Department of Elementary Education organised a ceremony at Waheed Shaheed Hall of Institute of Education and Research (IER) to pay tribute to the APS martyrs. Students presented a tableau, debates and poetry to pay tribute to the innocent souls who sacrificed their live in war on terror. PU Vice Chancellor Prof Niaz Ahmad, ex-PU VC Lt Gen (r) Arshad Mahmood, Lt Gen (r) Zawar Hussain, Director Dept of Elementary Education Prof Dr Abdul Qayyum Ch, faculty members and a large number of students participated in the event.

Addressing the participants, Prof Niaz Ahmad said that our coward enemy wanted to demoralise our nation through the attack but he failed in his nefarious designs. Lt Gen (r) Arshad Mahmood, Lt Gen (r) Zawar Hussain and Dr Abdul Qayyum recalled and paid tribute to the services of the martyrs and Ghazis of Pak Army.

Meanwhile, PU Vice-Chancellor Prof Niaz Ahmad has stressed the need to learn from history saying that today’s Pakistan is much stronger than the past due to the brave Army. He was addressing the seminar organised by the Institute of Islamic Studies (IIS).

Noted analyst Orya Mabqool Jan, Dean Faculty of Islamic Studies Prof Dr Hammad Lakhvi, Chairman Dept of History Prof Dr Mahboob Hussain, Director IIS Prof Dr Shahida Parveen, Hafiz Dr Munir Al Azhari from UK, faculty members and a large number of students participated in the seminar.