Pak school teachers allowed to carry guns to ward off terrorist attacks

Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided that the employees of all educational institutions including teachers will be carrying licensed arms on the premises to respond in a suitable way in case of a terrorist attack.

Provincial information minister Mushtaq Ahmad Ghani said that the cabinet decided to allow the staff of schools including teachers to carry licensed arms so they can engage attackers for some time before law enforcement agencies arrive, reported Dawn News.

Ghani said the cabinet met the Chief Minister Pervez Khattak in the chair and announced several steps to be taken to ensure foolproof security at educational institutions in the province.

The educational institutions in the province that did not satisfy the government security guidelines completely have not been allowed to reopen.

There were around 65,000 policemen in the province, said Ghani adding that it was impossible for them to provide security to every school and therefore, the government had opted for community policing.

Image: Students get their bags checked by school security staff at a school in Pakistan. Photograph: Khuram Parvez/Reuters