Pakistan on Saturday pointed fingers at Afghanistan over the assault on Bacha Khan University, saying the attackers came from across the border where they had planned the strike.
Chief military spokesperson Lt Gen Asim Bajwa told a news conference that five of the terrorists involved in the attack and their facilitators had been caught and their identities ascertained.
“These five terrorists have been identified as Riaz, Noorullah, Adil, Zia and Ibrahim,” he said. “While Omar commanded the militants from Afghanistan during the attack, Adil, who earlier worked as a mason in Bacha Khan University, provided information about the campus to the attackers.”
The militants entered Mardan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province through the Torkham border crossing and stayed in two houses there, Bajwa said. “They were provided with arms and ammunition from Darra Adam Khel area,” he added.
Phone calls to carry out the attack were made from Afghanistan, he said. Investigations are still underway to confirm the source of financing for the attackers.
Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif chaired a meeting in Peshawar to chalk out a strategy after the attack on the varsity in Charsadda that killed 21 people. He is expected to push Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to demand the capture of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan chief Mullah Fazlullah, believed to be in Afghanistan.
Relations between the two countries improved over the past month but observers said the attack on the university and the alleged link with Afghan-based terror groups are expected to cast a cloud on ties.
{{/usCountry}}Relations between the two countries improved over the past month but observers said the attack on the university and the alleged link with Afghan-based terror groups are expected to cast a cloud on ties.
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