No end in sight: Another primary school razed to the ground in Mohmand

Boys primary school was destroyed by militants in Khwazai, Mohmand Agency, says official of political administration.

GHALLANAI:

A boys primary school was destroyed by militants on Wednesday night in Khwazai, Mohmand Agency, an official of the political administration told The Express Tribune.

The official said unidentified militants had planted explosives inside a classroom of the school, which lies some 20 kilometres west of the agency headquarters, Ghallanai. The building was razed to the ground as a result of the explosion. The village defence committee opened retaliatory fire, causing the militants to flee from the area.

A search operation was conducted by law enforcement agencies, along with khasadar and levies forces. Sixty four people from the village were arrested under the Frontier Crimes Regulation’s ‘territorial responsibility’ and shifted to a political administration’s lock-up in Ghallanai, while 15 suspects were taken into custody by law-enforcement agencies. Nobody has so far claimed responsibility for the blast.

After this incident, the number of schools destroyed in Mohmand Agency has gone up to 124, out of a total of about 480 schools destroyed in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), according to the education department. The education of thousands of students in the tribal areas has suffered as a result.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16^th, 2014.