PESHAWAR: Unidentified gunmen on Wednesday have entered Bacha Khan University in Khyber Pakhtunkha’s Charsadda town and opened fire on students and faculty members as they gathered at the school for a poetry recital to commemorate the anniversary of the activist and leader whom the school is named after.

Rescue officials have also confirmed several deaths in the attack; however, the toll will be confirmed after completion of clearance operation.

Although the number of gunmen cannot yet be confirmed, initial reports say four to seven armed men entered the university premises. Several students are still present inside the building.

Rescue officials say at least 50 students and staff members have been rescued.

Out of these 50, five students are injured and have been shifted to District Headquarters Hospital, Charsadda for treatment.

Director General ISPR Lt. General Asim Saleem Bajwa said terrorists have been contained in two blocks within university, adding that operation by troops and commandos and air surveillance was still underway.

The terrorists barged into the university, located around 10 kilometres from Charsadda, at around 9:30 am.

At least two huge explosions were reported from inside the university. The reports from inside suggest extensive damages and casualties.

At the time of attack, an event regarding death anniversary of Pashtun politician Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, known as Bacha Khan, was being attended by a large number of students inside the university.

Security operation underway

DIG Saeed Wazir says two attackers have been killed. Security personnel are still entering the school to control the situation. Wazir tells Reuters he believes most of the students had been rescued but several gunmen remained at large inside the university.

“Two students and a chemistry professor have been killed,” DIG Saeed Wazir confirmed.

The remaining terrorists are giving stiff resistance to security forces as they continue the clearance operation. Intelligence sources say eight to 10 terrorists are still inside the school.

The families of students have lined up outside the school. Journalists and all other non-essential personnel have been asked to stay back in order to not interfere with the ongoing security operation. Up to 20 ambulances have entered the university to rescue the injured.

Security forces, including SSG Special Forces have entered the premises of the university.

The university has been cordoned off, said Nasir Durrani, police chief of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, of which Peshawar is the capital.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) represntative Shaukaut Yousafzai said between 50 to 60 people have been wounded.

Attackers are believed to be on the second and third floors of the campus buildings.

A heavy contingent of police and army personnel have launched operation inside the university.

Worried parents and relatives of students in large number have gathered outside the university.

“There are male and female staff members and students on the campus,” said Fazal Raheem Marwat, vice chancellor at the Bacha Khan University, adding he had been on his way to work when he was informed of the attack.

“There was no announced threat but we had already beefed up security at the university.”

Talking to media, Deputy Commissioner Tahir Zafar Abbasi said that situation is under control now. Firing in the university premises has stopped.

Naik Mohammad, security chief at the university, said the attackers had entered close to a campus guest house.

He confirmed that police and military had arrived with firing continuing on campus.

Attack was feared

Rumours of possible terrorist attacks on schools had been circulating in Peshawar and surrounding rural areas over the last week, forcing some schools to close educational institutions early.

District administration had directed some schools to close their campuses for one day (last Saturday) insisting there were reports of possible terrorist attacks on them.

Authorities said emergency has been declared in government hospitals.

Peshawar was the location of Pakistan‘s deadliest ever extremist attack, when Taliban gunmen stormed an army-run school in December last year and slaughtered more than 150 people, most of them children, in an hours-long siege.

The attack on the school prompted a crackdown on extremism in Pakistan, with the military increasing an offensive against militants in the tribal areas where they had previously operated with impunity.