- Tributes paid to four soldiers martyred in NWA
in Peshawar on Sunday. – SABAH
RAWALPINDI/PESHAWAR, February 28: Funeral prayers of Captain Umair Abbasi and three soldiers of Pak Army who lost their lives in Shawal were offered in Peshawar today.
The Pakistan Army is “determined to finish all terrorists from their pockets in every nook and corner in the country”, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif said on Sunday.
The Army chief said this today before visiting the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Peshawar to meet with those injured in the ongoing phase of Operation Zarb-e-Azb.
Gen Raheel Sharif also visited and inquired about the well-being of Afghan National Army soldier Sepoy Alam Zeb, who is also being treated at the CMH in Peshawar.
According to ISPR, relatives of the martyred army personnel along with Army Chief Gen Raheel Sharif attended the funeral prayers and prayed for the departed souls. On this occasion, the Army Chief said that they are committed to root out terrorism from the country. He said terrorists will not be given chance to flee from Shawal. He also visited Combined Military Hospital in Peshawar and inquired about health of the personnel who were injured in the operation.
Sepoy Zeb was evacuated from Bajaur on February 25 due to head injury and has been admitted at the CMH Peshawar since February 26. He was injured by gunfire from terrorists in Afghanistan and was evacuated to a Pakistani post and later to Peshawar.
Earlier today, the Army chief reached Peshawar to attend the funeral prayers of the four soldiers who were martyred the previous say in an exchange of gunfire during an encounter with terrorists in the Shawal valley of North Waziristan tribal agency.
The funeral prayers were offered at the Corps Headquarters which was also attended by the senior civil and military leadership. Gen Raheel Sharif expressed solidarity with the bereaved families. Later, the Army chief also visited the Corps HQ where he was briefed by Corps Commander Lt Gen Hidayat ur Rehman about latest progress of the operation in Shawal. The Army chief expressed his complete satisfaction over the final push in North Waziristan to evict terrorists from isolated pockets of the Shawal valley close to the Pak-Afghan border. Paying rich tributes to the sacrifices and resilience of soldiers who are courageously fighting terrorists in the difficult mountainous area of Shawal, COAS said: “We are determined and will go to any length to finish all pockets of terrorists from any nook and corner of the country.” At least 19 militants and four soldiers, including an Army captain, were martyred on Saturday during a clash with terrorists who were hiding in the remote Shawal valley. The incident took place three days after Gen Raheel Sharif visited the valley and gave orders to the military commanders to launch the last phase of Operation Zarb-e-Azb to clear Shawal of the militants. Shawal valley is reportedly infested with militants who are expected to offer resistance to the advancing army troops. Military officials said the security forces were conducting a ground offensive against the militants in their few remaining strongholds in Shawal near the Pak-Afghan border when the incident took place. The martyred soldiers included Captain Umair Abbasi, Havaldar Hakim Ali, Sepoy Rashid and Sepoy Hameed. The bodies of the slain soldiers were first shifted to Miranshah, the headquarters of North Waziristan, in a military helicopter from where they were transported to Peshawar before being taken to their native areas for burial. Two of the martyred soldiers belonged to Sindh and one to Dera Ismail Khan. All were from the Frontier Force. The martyrs were laid to rest in Peshawar on Sunday in a funeral procession also attended by the Army chief and top military and civilian officials.-Agencies
