Rescue team members go through debris inside the Army Public School, which was attacked by Taliban gunmen, in Peshawar, December 17, 2014. Credit: Reuters/Zohra Bensemra
Pakistan’s Gallows Await 3,000 Convicted Terrorists; First Will Hang ‘Within Days’ -- McClatchy News
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s government fast-tracked warrants of execution for convicted terrorists Thursday, moving swiftly on its promise to crack down on militants after a Taliban massacre of 132 schoolchildren Tuesday in the northern city of Peshawar.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had lifted a six-year moratorium on capital punishment Wednesday, vowing to eliminate terrorists in Pakistan irrespective of whether they targeted it or neighboring Afghanistan or India.
On Sharif’s orders Thursday, the country’s ceremonial president, Mamnoon Hussain, rejected 17 mercy petitions that convicted terrorists on death row had filed earlier. The army chief of staff, Gen. Raheel Sharif, who’s no relation to the prime minister, also signed six so-called “black warrants” for the execution of soldiers convicted of terrorism offenses by military courts.
Officials said those 23 terrorists would be executed within days, and they’re likely to be followed by dozens more hangings at prisons around the country.
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Update: The death warrants have already been signed .... Pakistani military chief signs death warrants for six ‘hard-core terrorists’ (Washington Post). Not surprising .... the militant leader who organized the school massacre is promising more killings .... Pakistan Massacre Organizer Vows More Killings (WSJ)
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