NOWSHERA, Pakistan -- A Pakistani provincial official whose son was killed and whose home was attacked by a suicide bomber in the past five days has vowed to continue his work, RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal reports.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said the attacks against his home and his family represent a threat not only to his community but to the wider world. He said he would not seek revenge.
Hussain spoke at a press conference on July 27 in Pabbi, a town 25 kilometers east of Peshawar.
His only son, 28-year-old Mian Rashid Hussain, was killed on July 24 in an attack for which the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility.
And at least eight people, including three policemen, were killed on July 26 in a suicide bomb attack outside the minister's home in Pabbi. The
bomber struck as people gathered to offer condolences to the family for the son's death.
Iftikhar Hussain said the attack on the mourners, many of whom were women, was not simply against Islamic principles. He said the suicide bombing violated Pashtun Wali, the pre-Islamic code of honor of ethnic Pashtuns.
The oral Pashtun Wali code is central to the lives of most ethnic Pashtuns. Any violation of it is considered a betrayal of all Pashtuns.
Hussain is also a Pashtun nationalist leader.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said the attacks against his home and his family represent a threat not only to his community but to the wider world. He said he would not seek revenge.
Hussain spoke at a press conference on July 27 in Pabbi, a town 25 kilometers east of Peshawar.
His only son, 28-year-old Mian Rashid Hussain, was killed on July 24 in an attack for which the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility.
And at least eight people, including three policemen, were killed on July 26 in a suicide bomb attack outside the minister's home in Pabbi. The
bomber struck as people gathered to offer condolences to the family for the son's death.
Iftikhar Hussain said the attack on the mourners, many of whom were women, was not simply against Islamic principles. He said the suicide bombing violated Pashtun Wali, the pre-Islamic code of honor of ethnic Pashtuns.
The oral Pashtun Wali code is central to the lives of most ethnic Pashtuns. Any violation of it is considered a betrayal of all Pashtuns.
Hussain is also a Pashtun nationalist leader.
