Pakistan arrests another main accused of Taliban attack on army school

Pakistani security forces have arrested another main accused of the deadliest attack on the army school in Peshawar in which 150 people, nearly all students, were killed in December, the army said Monday.

Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on the Army Public School on Dec. 16.

The security forces have killed and arrested several other suspects in connection with the attack and a few had been at large.

"Another terrorist, Taj Muhammad alias Rizwan, one of the main executor in Peshawar Army Public School (APS) attack has been arrested by security forces in an Intelligence Based Operation," the army said Monday.

Taj Muhammad was commander of 2nd Group which attacked APS, a statement from the military's Inter-Services Public Relations said.

The 27 years-old Taj Muhammad alias Rizwan is a resident of Sippah area of Khyber tribal region bordering Afghanistan.

He was disguising as an Internally Displaced Person in a village near Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Taj Muhammad confessed his affiliation with the banned Tehrik-e- Taliban Pakistan (TTP) since 2008 and has been involved in many other terrorist activities in NWA and around Peshawar, the army said.

Army spokesman Maj Gen Asim Bajwa said that a total of 27 people had been involved in the planning and carrying out of the attack.

He said that six suspects had been arrested by the Afghan authorities on intelligence passed on by the Pakistani authorities.

TTP Chief Maulvi Fazalullah had personally issued instructions for the attack, the army spokesman added. Endi