Post by kokonutwoman on Jan 23, 2009 9:02:22 GMT 12
Taliban Bombs Pakistan Schools
4:12pm UK, Monday January 19, 2009
Suspected Taliban militants have bombed five schools in Pakistan as part of a campaign against girls' education in the country's lawless northwest.
Militants - who have blown up or burned down more than 170 schools in their campaign - had ordered all girls' schools in the area to close by January 15.
The attacks are a throwback to conditions in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, when education for girls was banned and most women forced to stay home.
The attacks came hours after government spokeswoman Sherry Rehman vowed all schools in the area would reopen by the end of the holidays in March.
The Swat valley schools, including some 1,600 government-run establishments with a quarter of a million students, are closed for the winter vacation until the end of February.
But an association representing 400 private schools for boys and girls in the valley has said all its sites would remain closed after the break because of the militant threat.
A permanent shutdown would threaten education for tens of thousands of students.
Dilawar Khan Bangash, the police chief in the troubled valley, said it was not immediately clear if the attacks were a direct response to the government's recent pledge.
But militants appear to be targeting schools indiscriminately in a bid to prevent them reopening, he went on.
The attacks destroyed three schools for boys and two for girls, Bangash said.
The Swat valley was a major tourist attraction before militants began their anti-government campaign in the region more than a year ago.
It lies close to the tribally-governed belt along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, where the West believes al Qaeda leaders have found refuge.
4:12pm UK, Monday January 19, 2009
Suspected Taliban militants have bombed five schools in Pakistan as part of a campaign against girls' education in the country's lawless northwest.
Militants - who have blown up or burned down more than 170 schools in their campaign - had ordered all girls' schools in the area to close by January 15.
The attacks are a throwback to conditions in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, when education for girls was banned and most women forced to stay home.
The attacks came hours after government spokeswoman Sherry Rehman vowed all schools in the area would reopen by the end of the holidays in March.
The Swat valley schools, including some 1,600 government-run establishments with a quarter of a million students, are closed for the winter vacation until the end of February.
But an association representing 400 private schools for boys and girls in the valley has said all its sites would remain closed after the break because of the militant threat.
A permanent shutdown would threaten education for tens of thousands of students.
Dilawar Khan Bangash, the police chief in the troubled valley, said it was not immediately clear if the attacks were a direct response to the government's recent pledge.
But militants appear to be targeting schools indiscriminately in a bid to prevent them reopening, he went on.
The attacks destroyed three schools for boys and two for girls, Bangash said.
The Swat valley was a major tourist attraction before militants began their anti-government campaign in the region more than a year ago.
It lies close to the tribally-governed belt along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, where the West believes al Qaeda leaders have found refuge.
