APS commission laments locals’ treachery, betrayal

Judicial commission's report highlights flaws in security protocol at Peshawar’s army-run school at time of massacre

ISLAMABAD:

A judicial commission formed in 2018 to probe into the 2014 Army Public School (APS) massacre has noted that the tragedy could never have taken place if some local people had not given shelter to the terrorists.

"Had our own people not provided shelter to the terrorists, the militants would have never succeeded in their nefarious design. But it is abysmal that our own blood played hand in glove with enemies,” said the commission’s report unveiled on Friday on the order of the Supreme Court.

“The local people of village Tehkhail could neither identify nor report movement of the foreigners. Six terrorists were residing in the same village with the help of local people,” it added.

Heavily armed terrorists of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on December 16, 2014 stormed the APS in Peshawar, methodically killing 145 people, mostly schoolchildren.

The incident, one of the most tragic in the country’s recent history, deeply shocked the nation which soon reached a consensus on a strategy – the National Action Plan (NAP) – to curb the rampant spread of terrorism in the country.

The military, in successive campaigns, also wrestled back control of areas in erstwhile tribal areas which had become a hotbed of local and foreign terrorists by intensifying the Operation Zarb-e-Azb and launching the Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad.

However, the parents of the martyred children kept demanding a judicial inquiry into the incident to identify and punish the people who carried out the attack or failed to protect their children.

Responding to an application submitted by the APS Martyrs Forum, former chief justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Oct 5, 2018 formed a judicial commission headed by a Peshawar High Court (PHC) judge Ibrahim Khan to submit its report within six weeks after conducting a thorough probe into the attack.

And a three-judge bench, headed by the incumbent Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed, on Friday ordered the relevant authorities to make the commission's report public.

The 3,000-page report – containing statements of 132 people, including 101 witnesses, 31 policemen, Pakistan Army personnel and other officers – noted that no intelligence agency can be successful as long as one segment of society has sympathy with the enemy for one reason or another.

“Admittedly, if the public would provide them [terrorists] shelter and weapons then agencies would be at the mercy of [such] powers. I can perceive with honesty that one's own blood and flesh committed treachery and betrayal, the result would always be devastating,” it said.

It said while this complicity of the local population compromised the efforts of the security apparatus – made within the available resources – it also augmented and intensified the accomplishment rate of the enemy's nefarious plan on the other.

It said no agency could outperform the impact of any attack effortlessly “when infidels are within”.

“In such a situation, surely a lapse in intelligence has a chance to emerge still the nation, especially the aggrieved people of the incident, are equally justified to expect optimum performance from our intelligence agency because of its image as one of the finest spy agencies in the world.”

Regarding the aggrieved persons’ allegations about the failure of the agencies to foil the heart incident, the commission said it received agencies’ response in which it was stated that thousands of looming threats are averted, disrupted and disposed of through silent response.

“The [agencies’] response emphasized that the success of the agencies depend on the willing cooperation of the nation and the active role of the public at large could not be overstated.”

The report said the intelligence wing of the forces has to respond not only physical but also invisible threats which provide material, financial narrative and environmental support against the nation and the state institutions.

“In this never ending pseudo war, the agencies have been successful on many occasions but incidents of bravery and success are unnoticed.

“In case in hand, it is our agencies which intercepted the communication linkage between the terrorists and their handlers on the day of the incident [Dec 16, 2014],” it noted.

Security fiasco

The report highlighted the shortcomings of the static guards deployed at the outer gates of the APS Peshawar as well as the MVT-1 patrolling in the vicinity

“The MVT-1 was beguiled toward the smoke erupted from a vehicle set ablaze by the terrorists as part of their plan while leaving the premises of the APS unattended. The act alone gave edge to the militants to break into the premises of the APS from backside from where the MVT-1 had to patrol.

“Though [an]other MVT responded but was not capable of buying the needed time for the QRF [Quick Response Force] and the RRF [Rapid Response Force] to overwhelm the terrorists attack before it could cause the catastrophe.”

It noted that a heavy responsibility is on the 11 Corp to operate against the terrorists. It said though the armed forces gave sacrifices but the incident plagued their success stories which deserved deification. It said the unit regulating MVT-1 has been awarded punishment through court of inquiry.

The report revealed that after the incident, the army initiated action against 15 military officials including a brigadier and sacked five officials including a major.

"This fiasco in the security of the institute, from one angle, could be ascribed to the incomparable number of static guards composing the 1st tier of security apparatus to the level of looming threat and their improper position.”

“Equally, incomprehensible is the inertia on part of the Askari Guards as well as the deputed static guards to this initial heavy firing and blasts by the terrorists until the MVT-2 and the QRF arrived.

It said if the guards had shown a little response and engaged the militants at the very beginning of the attack, the impact of the incident might have been lesser.

“Nevertheless, movement of the militants towards the adjacent toddlers’ block was restricted by valiant soldiers of the MVT-2 and the QRF on their arrival under the command of Brigadier 102 HQ 11 Corps, and thus further devastation in that block was foiled,” it added.

SC hearing

Presiding the hearing on Friday, Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed also ordered the SC office to make public Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Javed Khan’s comments on the report. The hearing was attended by a number of parents of the martyred children.

Commenting on the case and subsequent action taken against the perpetrators of the heinous act, the AGP assured the court that "every possible action is taken against those responsible for the incident".

The chief justice said the prosecution should start with the "people in power" and strict action should be taken by the government against those responsible to ensure such a tragedy is not repeated.

He also asked for the names of those whose negligence resulted in the incident and said those who did not provide intelligence in a timely matter "should be known". “Even with such security the people are not safe,” the CJ added.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan, a member of the SC bench, said the tragedy was a matter of "great sorrow for the entire nation" and parents of the martyred children should be helped.

During the proceedings, the parents implored the bench to ensure such a tragedy does not occur again in the country. Justice Faisal Arab assured the parents that a case would be registered against those responsible for security lapse.

The SC also appointed Amanullah Kanrani as a judicial assistant and adjourned the hearing of the case for a month. It also ordered its office to provide copies of the judicial commission report to the parents.