RAWALPINDI: President Asif Ali Zardari has warned that whoever commits acts of terrorism in the country will be given a befitting reply.
“To my brothers standing guard at our borders, I promise that the blood of our sons [who gave their lives to defend the country] will not go in vain,” President Zardari said in a speech after attending the funeral prayers for Lt. Col. Syed. Kashif Ali and Captain Muhammad Ahmed Bader offered at Rawalpindi’s Chaklala Garrison on Saturday.
“We will avenge them [our martyrs],” the president added.
Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and other senior officials also attended the funeral prayers.
Two officers along with five other soldiers were martyred after terrorists attacked a post of security forces in Mir Ali general area of North Waziristan district on Saturday.
According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a group of six terrorists attacked the post in the early hours of today, with Pakistani troops foiling their initial attempt to break in before ramming an explosives-laden vehicle into the post.
Several suicide bombings followed, leading to the collapse of part of the building, resulting in the martyrdom of the brave sons of the soil.
Other soldiers martyred in the attack included Havildar Sabir (resident of Khyber district), Naik Khurshid (resident of Lakki Marwat district), Sepoy Nasir (resident of Peshawar district), Sepoy Raja (resident of Kohat district) and Sepoy Sajjad (resident of Abbottabad district).
However, the security forces effectively engaged the terrorists, killing all six attackers.
Emphasizing that the Pakistan Army has always strived to set higher standards of professionalism and loyalty in its unrelenting fight against terrorism, President Zardari said, “This noble sacrifice is yet another glorious testimony to the unflinching determination of our gallant sons who never hesitated to offer the supreme sacrifice for the defense of our homeland. The entire nation stands in solidarity with our armed forces.”
Meanwhile, the bodies of the martyred soldiers have been taken to their respective hometowns where they will be laid to rest with full military honours.
