Pakistan executes four convicted militants

Pakistan executed four convicted militants on death row on Sunday, as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif sought to show he was getting tough on terror after Taliban militants slaughtered more than 130 children at a school last week.

The hanging of the four men - all convicted in connection with a failed 2003 assassination attempt on former military ruler Pervez Musharraf - came just two days after Pakistan executed two other convicted terrorists, ending an unofficial six-year moratorium on the death penalty.

Mr Sharif declared the end of the unofficial embargo on executions last week, a day after six Taliban militants massacred 141 people, including 132 children, a handful of teachers and the principal of an army school in Peshawar.

Senior police officials told the Financial Times that further executions were expected in the coming days in Pakistan, where about 500 people convicted of terrorist offensives were said to be on death row.

A senior member of Mr Sharif's party, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, told the FT on condition of anonymity, that the executions are intended to send a tough message to militant groups. "People who choose to kill will be executed," he said. "There will be a body for every innocent body killed."

The resumption of executions has been popular on the streets of Islamabad, where many expressed support for tough action against militants.

"These people have gone around slaughtering Pakistanis," said Mushtaq Malik, an Islamabad school teacher. "They deserve to die. Otherwise, people will believe that you can kill someone and spend time in jail before you go free. The murders in Peshawar should be a wake-up call for all of us".

However, Hasan Askari Rizvi, a respected Pakistani commentator on defence and security affairs, told the FT that while the executions may placate public anger, they cannot substitute for a comprehensive national security strategy for tackling the Taliban.

"The hangings of these people may be one part of the answer and the intention is that this will deter future attacks," Mr Rizvi said. "What we need is a comprehensive national strategy. Where is that strategy?"

While the deliberate attack on the unarmed children provoked widespread revulsion around the world, international human rights groups have criticised the executions, calling them a "cynical reaction" that would only perpetuate the cycle of violence.

"It is extremely disappointing that the government has given in to fear and anger," David Griffiths, the deputy Asia-Pacific director of Amnesty International, said in a statement. "As horrific as the attack on the Peshawar school was, more killings - this time by the government - is never the answer to combating terrorism and crime."

Pakistan is already braced for the potential retaliation from Taliban militants following a series of government air strikes and military ground operations against fighters in the northwestern tribal regions late last week. Scores of militants were reportedly killed in the government offensive.

It was after a Taliban attack on Karachi's international airport that Pakistan's army launched a campaign against militant strongholds in North Waziristan. Taliban representatives claimed the attack on the Peshawar school was retaliation and revenge for the army offensive.

The four men hanged on Sunday, and one of the men hanged on Friday, were all convicted of involvement in an al-Qaeda inspired assassination attempt on Mr Musharraf.

The second man hanged on Friday was involved in a 2009 attack on the army headquarters in Rawalpindi.

Western diplomats said the resumption of hangings overlooked the weaknesses in police prosecutions of individuals in connection with terror attacks.

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