Khattak recommends prestigious award for Peshawar attack hero

Published February 18, 2015
Security personnel inspect inside the Imamia Imambargah in Peshawar after an attack by Taliban militants. -AFP/File
Security personnel inspect inside the Imamia Imambargah in Peshawar after an attack by Taliban militants. -AFP/File

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pervaiz Khattak on Wednesday announced a civil award for Abbas Ali who was killed in the Imamia Imambargah attack.

"The provincial government will strongly recommend Tamgha-i-Shujaat for Abbas Ali who sacrificed his life to save the lives of others,” Khattak told a delegation of the Shia community led by the cleric of Imamia Masjid.

The chief minister said Abbas Ali deserved the award for his courage in saving the lives of people who were offering prayers in the mosque.

Ali had returned from Dubai a day before he lost his life in the attack. He had killed the suicide bomber, but later succumbed to his injuries.

The chief minister has also ordered an inquiry against eight security officials for their alleged negligence.

At least 21 people were killed and 50 others injured during a gun and bomb attack at the imambargah in Peshawar's Hayatabad area when suicide attackers and gunmen — dressed in police uniforms — attacked worshippers offering Friday prayers.

Read more: 21 killed as Taliban storm Peshawar imambargah

Banned militant organisation Jundullah, a splinter group of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack through an email statement later in the evening, saying it was revenge for a militant known as Doctor Usman — who was hanged in December.

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