KOHAT: Execution of militants convicted by military courts resumed here after a gap of about one year as five members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were hanged in the district jail on Wednesday.

The executed convicts were identified as Shoukat Ali, son of Abdul Jabbar; Imdad Ullah, son of Abdul Wajid; Sabir Shah, son of Syed Ahmed Shah; Khandan, son of Dost Mohammad Khan; and Anwar Ali, son of Fazal Ghani.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), media wing of the military, had made their conviction public on Feb 11 and stated that then army chief Gen Raheel Sharif had confirmed the death sentences awarded to them.

The last execution of the accused convicted by military courts took place on March 30, 2016, when Rab Nawaz and Mehmood were hanged in the Kohat prison. This was followed by a gap in carrying out such executions as appeals of several convicts have been pending in different courts, including the Supreme Court and the Peshawar High Court.

According to a press release issued by the ISPR, Shoukat Ali was involved in attacks on personnel of law enforcement agencies and armed forces, causing death of some soldiers and injuries to others. He was tried on five charges and awarded death sentence.

Imdad Ullah was involved in destruction of an educational institution in Buner district and attacks on personnel of a law enforcement agency, leading to death of some soldiers and injuries to others. He was tried on five charges and awarded death sentence.

Sabir Shah, Khandan and Anwar Ali were involved in attacks on personnel of the armed forces which resulted in the death of soldiers. Each of them was tried on three charges and awarded death sentence.

The five had confessed to crimes they had committed before magistrates and trial courts, the ISPR said.

During its two-year constitutional life, the military courts, set up to try civilians charged with terrorism after the carnage at the Army Public School in Peshawar in 2014, have convicted 274 accused. Of them 161 were awarded death sentence and 113 prison terms, mostly life imprisonment.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2017