Taliban militants burnt down seven primary schools in northwest Pakistan, where children recently resumed their studies after the area was declared safe by the army, officials said on Tuesday. "Three boys' and four girls' primary schools were set on fire by militants late Monday in Buner district," district police chief Abdul Rasheed told AFP. No one was hurt in the attacks as the schools were closed for the night, he said, but the buildings were burnt to the ground.
Shams-ul-Arifeen, the education secretary of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), confirmed the incidents.
Schools reopened in the restive area of Pakistan's northwest on August 1. They had been closed for nearly three months as the military pursued a fierce offensive to crush the Islamist hardliners in three districts including Buner. |