Taliban gunmen attacked a school van in northwestern Pakistan on
Tuesday, killing four children and the driver in an assault they said
was carried out to punish local tribesman for resisting the insurgent
movement.
At least 14 other children and two female teachers were
wounded in the attack in Matani on the outskirts of the main
northwestern city of Peshawar, said police officer Ejaz Khan.
Two
local tribal leaders in Matani have raised local militias to stop
militant infiltration into Peshawar from the nearby border regions with
Afghanistan. They get government financial and logistical help, and
have killed or captured many militants over the last 18 months.
But
they and their families have been ruthlessly targeted by the militants,
which until three years ago were in control of the area. Its proximity
to the tribal regions and the main northwestern city of Peshawar make
it highly strategic.
"This was to teach them a lesson and we will
continue to carry out attacks wherever and whenever possible no matter
if it is a school or a school bus," said Mohammad Afridi, a Pakistani
Taliban spokesman in the Dara Adam Khel region, which is close to
Matani.
Officer Khan said five gunmen armed with assault rifles
and rocket launchers attacked the van, which was taking students from
the Khyber Grammar School. He said no rocket fire hit the van and that
all students were boys between the age of 10 and 15.
Militants
seeking to overthrow Pakistan's Western-backed government have carried
out hundreds of attacks in recent years, mostly against security force,
civilian or state targets. The army, supported by the United States, is
battling the insurgents in several regions, but the extremists have
proved resilient.
The government has also supported the creation
of tribal militias to fight the Taliban. They have had some success in
stopping the spread of the insurgency, but have been repeatedly
attacked. Many of the deadliest strikes in recent years have been
against the tribal forces, or civilians living in their areas.
Elsewhere
in the northwest, the bodies of two young men were found with a note
saying they were killed by the Pakistani Taliban for spying on one of
its commanders. They were found in their home village of Pahar Khel in
Lakki Marwat district, said police officer Syed Khan. They had been
shot. AP
