Pakistan authorities agree on tough anti-terror policy

Pakistan's top political and military leaders Friday agreed to pursue a tough policy against the militant groups following the recent massacre of children in a Taliban attack on a school.

The attack on the Army Public School in the northwestern city of Peshawar killed more than 140 students and teachers Tuesday.

The prime minister visited the military headquarters in Rawalpindi and chaired a high-level meeting on national security and strategy against the armed groups, Xinhua reported.

The meeting, attended by Chief of the Army Staff General Raheel Sharif and senior military officials discussed the current security situation in the country, officials said.

The meeting also focused on the ongoing major military operation in North Waziristan tribal region and the future course of action following the school attack, an official statement said.

Official sources said the leaders discussed an amendment in the Army Act to put on trial in military courts civilians who are involved in attacks on the Pakistan Army or its installations.

At the three-hour meeting, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his key cabinet members were briefed on national security matters.

Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt. Gen. Rizwan Akhtar gave a detailed briefing on the security situation, the sources said.

The meeting was held a day after General Sharif approved the execution of six "hardcore terrorists," who were sentenced to death by military courts.

The Senate Friday adopted a unanimous resolution strongly condemning the terrorist attack on the school.

Through the resolution, moved by opposition senator Mian Raza Rabbani, the upper house of the parliament resolved to destroy the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other terrorists.

The house declared as wilful, inhuman, barbaric and gruesome the murder of school children, the responsibility of which has already been claimed by the TTP.

It described the Peshawar incident as a grave national tragedy and said it was not an attack on the state and society, but on the future of Pakistan.

The senate pointed out that the militants are posing an existential threat to Pakistan and therefore there is a need for ideological and strategic clarity and complete unity.

Senate Chairman Syed Nayyer Hussain Bukhari said the entire nation was in deep grief over the Peshawar tragedy. The house dropped the normal proceedings and only adopted the unanimous resolution. - IANS