RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif on Thursday confirmed the death sentences of 12 convicts tried by the military courts, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Thursday.
The 12 “hardcore terrorists” were involved in “committing heinous offences relating to terrorism”, which include the Bannu jailbreak, attacks on armed forces, law enforcement agencies and civilians, ISPR said. Of those convicted, eight men belong to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), two belong to Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) and two to al Qaeda, ISPR said. The approval comes just two days after the Supreme Court had stayed execution of four terrorists, including two facilitators of APS attack. Political parties had unanimously agreed over the issue of setting up military courts to tackle terrorism cases in the country following the gruesome attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar in December 2014, following which parliament passed the 21st Constitutional Amendment in January 2015 to set up the said courts.
President Mamnoon Hussain had also promulgated an ordinance further revising the recently amended Army Act to ostensibly aid the functioning of military courts by allowing for trials in camera, i.e without the presence of the public or the media, and over video link if necessary. The Supreme Court in a majority ruling upheld the establishment of military courts in Pakistan. Petitions challenging the 21st Amendment were dismissed in August this year in a majority 11-6 vote of the 17-member SC bench. Chief Justice Nasirul Mulk and Justice Dost Muhammad announced the verdict. In a 14-3 majority vote, petitions challenging the 18th Amendment were also dismissed by the bench. Judges provided seven opinions and two additional notes on the ruling.
