Five facilitators of Pakistan university attack arrested: army

The Pakistan army said on Saturday that five facilitators of the deadly attack on a university that had killed 21 students, teachers and security guards, have been arrested.

The attack on Bacha Khan University at Charsadda district in the country's northwest on Jan. 20 was claimed by a Pakistani Taliban commander.

The detained suspects were produced before the media at a news conference in Peshawar, the capital of Khuyber Pakhtunkhwa province. A traced phone conversation between the mastermind Taliban commander and a Pakistani reporter was also played in which the commander claimed responsibility.

The facilitators were arrested in Mardan, a major town nearly 60 kilometers from Peshawar, military spokesman Lt. Gen. Asim Bajwa said.

He said two women were used to carry arms for the attack from Darra Adam Khel tribal area to avoid checking.

"Taliban commander Omar and his deputy Zakir handled the attack from Afghanistan. The attackers received ten calls on Afghan mobile number," General Bajwa said at a press conference after he attended a high level meeting to review the post-attack security situation.

Army Chief General Raheel Sharif presided over the meeting of top regional commanders, the director general of military operations and the director general of the spy agency ISI.

"During the meeting, matters related to operations being carried out in the tribal regions and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa came under discussion," the army spokesman said.

The meeting also reviewed Pakistan-Afghanistan border issues and progress in investigation of the university attack, he said, adding that Pakistan has been in touch with the Afghan authorities for a better border coordination and management.

He said one facilitator, Noorullah, brought the attackers from the border town of Torkham in public transport and took them to Mardan. "Another facilitator, Adil, arranged a rickshaw to transport them to the outskirts of the university," he said.

The army spokesman said that one facilitator, had provided the map of the university as he had earlier worked in the campus. One facilitator is still at large and search is underway for him.

"We have not yet identified financiers in the attack but they would also be exposed," he said. Enditem