The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Thursday declared deceased student Atizaz Hasan Bangash a ‘great hero’ for scarifying his life to stop a suicide bomber at a school in Hangu.
Atizaz, a class IX student was killed on January 6 when he tried to stop a suicide bomber from attacking a government school in Ibrahimzai, Hangu.
He spotted the attacker on his way to school and grabbed him before he entered the school.
The suicide bomber detonated his vest and blew himself up along with Atizaz. According to media reports, there were almost 2,000 students in attendance at the time of the attack.
Locals have called for acknowledgment of Atizaz’s sacrifice from the federal government for his courage that saved numerous lives.
On social media, there has been an outpour of praise and gratitude for his action.There have even been calls for him to receive the army’s highest honour award ‘Nishan-e-Haider’, though it is unclear if he would be qualified to receive it as a civilian.
“We the citizens believe that State of Pk must award Nishan-i-Haider to Pk’s brave son Shaheed Aitezaz,” journalist Nasim Zehra tweeted on Thursday.
