PESHAWAR, June 8: “Oh, we had such high hopes for our son,” cried mother of 17-year-old Khalilullah Jan, who got seriously injured in the Friday’s bomb blast in a bus on Charsadda Road in the provincial capital.

Khalil had come to Peshawar to get some books as he was preparing for entry test of an engineering college. He was on the way back home in Torangzai village, Charsadda, in the bus, which was targeted by terrorists near Gul Bela on Charsadda Road.

“He doesn’t smoke. He is an honest, obedient boy. Why would anyone want to hurt him,” cried Khalil’s mother, who was sitting on the floor of the Lady Reading Hospital as her son fought for his life in operation theatre.

According to the woman, who cried herself hoarse, Khalil is the youngest of her three sons. His father is a school headmaster, who dreams that one day, his son would be an engineer.

“I don’t know why one would attack a bus carrying innocent people,” said the crying mother, who was being comforted by female relatives, who, too, had misty eyes.

Khalil had received serious injuries to his shoulder and leg, and was being operated as his family anxiously waited outside as he was being operated.

On Friday, the last working day of the week, when excited government employees thinking of two coming holidays and seeing their loved ones in the village, headed fast towards their bus, some villagers and relatives of the government employees, especially women and young boys, too, boarded the bus as it takes them to their destination non-stop for low fare.

Shazia, who lied unconscious for being badly injured in the blast, is a mother of two. She was going back to her home in the bus and ended up in the hospital.

Touching scenes at LRH’s casualty ward brought all those, who accompanied the injured or saw them, to tears. Heart-wrenching cries of the family members of the dead and the injured could jolt even the people with nerves of steel.

Just outside an operation theatre, three daughters, four sons and husband of Naseem, a 50-year-old midwife working at LRH, were in deep grief.

The woman’s sons, who, too, were crying, were unable to keep their sisters calm as their mother was being operated for her serious injuries in the operation theatre.

Mohammad Ikram Khan, nephew of Ms Naseem, said he loathed those who hurt innocent people by bombing buses and markets.

“Why would anyone hurt us when we have not hurt anyone,” he said.

Nasreen Zia, a paramedic who knew three women who got injured and killed in the attack, said Ms Naseem was her colleague, who got seriously injured. However, her other colleague, Riyasat, and her daughter hailing from Charsadda were killed in the attack.Janas, working in the LRH and a colleague of Naseem, said usually working women coming for work from villages used the bus.

“Attacking innocent civilians, especially women and children, is inhuman and we strongly condemn those who are involved in such terrorist acts,” said Fazl-i-Mola, who had also brought an injured person to the hospital.