Peshawar school attack: Five hours and a lifetime of sorrow

Recently widowed, Aslam lost his only son in the APS massacre

PESHAWAR:

Muhammad Aslam had never imagined that his entire world would come apart with just one phone call from a relative on December 16, 2014.

The day had begun like any other. Aslam was supervising construction work at his house in Gulbahar when the phone rang.

“Army Public School (APS) is under attack,” the caller informed him.

Aslam’s first reaction was shock. Mubeen, his 14-year-old son, studied in the eighth grade at the same school. Panic coursed through his veins but he summoned the strength to speak.

“So all roads leading to the school will remain blocked and… and Mubeen will be late,” he replied, trying to remain optimistic.

What the caller said next left him speechless. As he was told the horror story of the massacre of children at APS, Aslam’s fatherly instinct prompted him to act quickly. Since the roads leading to the school were blocked, he rushed to the school on foot. When he arrived at APS an hour later, Aslam was told to either go to Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) or Combined Military Hospital (CMH). Mubeen’s father opted for LRH but found no trace of his son.

“He also went to CMH but was not allowed entry,” Waqar Khan, one of Aslam’s relatives told The Express Tribune. “They told him there was no Mubeen among the dead or injured so he returned home.”

In the time spent hoping Mubeen would just appear at their doorstep like it was any other day, vacillating between panic and smothering fear, Aslam must have wondered how his life could have taken such a dramatic turn.

Until a year ago, Aslam worked in the US while his wife and child lived in Peshawar. He returned to the city only after his wife fell ill. The family soon became all too familiar with the pain of losing a loved one when Mubeen’s mother died nine months ago. Since then, father and son developed a strong bond. They were each other’s family, friends and confidantes.

After his wife’s tragic demise, Aslam decided to stay in Pakistan as he felt his only child would be lonely in Peshawar without his mother. Moreover, Aslam’s brothers did not have any sons and were particularly fond of Mubeen.

Aslam was painfully aware of the void in their lives and was making plans for their future, not expecting tragedy to revisit their lives so soon.

After praying for his son’s safety for several hours, Aslam could not help but return to CMH where he was finally handed his son’s body. The vicious designs of a handful of terrorists had shattered his dreams for his small family and snatched a child away from his father.

“Mubeen’s body was among those who were later identified,” Khan said. “Once his identity was established, his coffin was handed over to Aslam. He had been shot in the head.”

Bereaved of his wife and then of his only child, unsurprisingly Aslam remains inconsolable.

In his grief-stricken state, he welcomed everyone who came to offer their condolences to his son’s wedding. “Today is his wedding in paradise,” he repeatedly said, as tears rolled down his cheeks.

“Mubeen was a lovely child,” Khan said, “He was enrolled at the school a year ago as he was interested in joining the Pakistan Army.”

According to Khan, Mubeen was brave and had the makings of a true soldier.

“I used to tell him that army men have to sacrifice their lives for their motherland,” he said. “He would always say that he would do the same as he also wanted to be a shaheed.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 25^th, 2014.