All schools and colleges closed in wake of university bomb attack
Pakistan ordered the closure of all schools and colleges on Wednesday after a double suicide attack targeting a university killed five people in the capital, Islamabad, on Tuesday as the army waged a renewed offensive against the Taliban.
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As ground troops launched new operations targeting Taliban bases in the lawless north-western tribal provinces in the mountainous area along the border with Afghanistan, security forces went on high alert against possible attacks from al Qaeda- and Taliban-linked militants after a spate of attacks this month that left 185 people dead.
“The closure has been ordered because of security threats received in recent days... We will assess the situation and hopefully they will reopen on Monday,” Atiqur Rehman, an education ministry spokesman, told AFP.
Pakistan’s board of education, which supervises more than 600 schools and colleges in the country, has postponed examinations and will announce a new date for them once the security situation has stabilised.
Tuesday's university bombing was the seventh major attack in just over two weeks.
Officials say at least 113 militants and 16 soldiers have been killed since the latest military offensive began on Saturday in South Waziristan.
More than 120,000 civilians are believed to have fled the war zone so far.
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