General Kayani condemns attack on Malala

COAS Genera­l Ashfaq Parvez Kayani visits Combin­ed Milita­ry Hospit­al in Peshaw­ar.

RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Wednesday visited the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Peshawar to oversee the treatment being given to Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in broad daylight on Tuesday in an attack claimed by the Taliban.

Strongly condemning the act of terrorism, Kayani said, “The cowards who attacked Malala and her fellow students have time and again shown how little regard they have for human life and how low they can stoop to impose their twisted ideology.”

He said this is was not the first time that militants had targeted children, the attack on Parade Lane in Rawalpindi “was a reminder of their bloodlust.”

Quoting Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) saying that “the one who is not kind to children, is not amongst us”, Kayani said the militants did not have respect for the words of the Holy Prophet. He added that such inhumane acts clearly exposed the extremist mindset the nation was facing.

He said, “By attacking Malala, the terrorists have failed to understand that she is not only an individual, but an icon of courage and hope, which vindicates the sacrifices that the people of Swat and the nation had given for saving the valley from the plague of terrorism.”

Kayani said that Malala became a symbol for the values that the Army, with the nation behind it, is fighting to preserve future generations, a statement issued by Inter-Services Public Relations said.

He said, “These are the intrinsic values of an Islamic society, based on the principles of liberty, justice and equality of man. Islam guarantees each individual – male or female – equal and inalienable right to life, property and human dignity, with faith and education as the chief obligations to achieve enlightenment.”

“We wish to bring home a simple message: We refuse to bow before terror. We will fight, regardless of the cost we will prevail,” he said. The COAS reiterated that the terrorists underestimated the resolve and resilience of the people of Pakistan.

“It is time we united and stood up to fight the propagators of such barbaric mindset and their sympathisers.”