In broad daylight: Pro-govt militia member, school headmaster gunned down

Clash between Akka Khel peace militia and Mangal Bagh-led LI lasts for 30 mins.

BARA/ PABBI:

A pro-government militia member and a schoolteacher were gunned down in separate incidents on Monday.

An official of Bara political administration said a clash erupted between the pro-government militia of Akka Khel and Mangal Bagh-led Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) in Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency early morning. The clash continued for around 30 minutes, during which a member of the militia identified as Mehmood Sultan Khel was severely injured. He was rushed to a hospital in Peshawar but succumbed to his injuries on the way. LI militants, however, managed to escape unscathed.

A search operation was launched in the area with the help of khasadar officials but no one was arrested till the filing of this report.

In a separate incident in Pabbi tehsil of Nowshera, the headmaster of a government school was gunned down by unidentified motorcyclists as he was returning home from school.

Pabbi police official Khalid Khan said the incident occurred at about 12:30pm. Abdul Azeem, the headmaster at Government Primary School for Boys, Pirano Bala, and a resident of Dag Behsud, was on his way back when two men riding on a motorcycle opened fire at him and escaped, killing Azeem on the spot.

After the incident, students and residents gathered at the site and took the body to Pabbi Civil Hospital. The police, however, have not yet registered an FIR.

Abdul Haleem, brother of the deceased, told the police they had an old rivalry but it had been resolved, adding he does not know who could have killed his brother.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 22^nd, 2014.