“I learned after 15 days that my brother was martyred,” says APS attack survivor

The father of Army Public School (APS) attack survivor Ahmad Nawaz shared a harrowing account of the tragedy his son endured on December 16, 2014. On that fateful day, Ahmad was severely injured, and his younger brother, Haris, was martyred in a brutal terrorist attack.

Muhammad Nawaz Khan, who describes himself as a UN SDGs Ambassador on his X account, took to social media to narrate the horrific events that Ahmad witnessed and miraculously survived.

His post accompanied heartbreaking pictures of Ahmad lying injured in a hospital bed after the attack.

Ahmad recalled that on December 16, 2014, terrorists stormed the school hall where students were attending a first aid course and began shooting indiscriminately. "We hid under the chairs," he shared.

The attackers, he said, started shooting students in the head, one by one. "When they shot at me, I pushed my head under the chair, so the bullet hit my left arm while gunpowder fell on my face," Ahmad recounted.

He explained that when the terrorists briefly left the hall, he tried to move to the dressing room behind the stage. However, the room was already filled with injured students. As he attempted to stand, his injured arm hung limp.

“I closed my eyes, pretended to be dead, and lay there. After a while, the terrorists returned to the room and began shooting at those who were screaming in pain. I was near the door when they came inside, stepping on my face as they entered," Ahmad remembered.

In a chilling detail, he said, “The terrorists threw phosphorus on my teacher, burning them alive in front of my eyes, and set the entire room on fire."

Rescuers eventually arrived and placed Ahmad in an ambulance filled with bodies and transported him to the hospital.

During his treatment, Ahmad was initially unaware that his younger brother, Haris, had been martyred in the attack. "But 15 days later, I found out through a friend that Haris had been martyred," he shared.

In 2020, he secured a place at the University of Oxford, joining notable alumni such as Imran Khan, Malala Yousufzai, and late Benazir Bhutto.

This July, Ahmad achieved a remarkable milestone by graduating from the prestigious university in July, 2024. 

A human rights campaigner had also met Prince William at Kingston Palace, where he received the 'Global Legacy Award 2019'.

In September, Ahmad was awarded the prestigious British Empire Medal (BEM) by King Charles of Great Britain.