Kandhar: Afghan police have arrested 10 Taliban militants allegedly involved in an acid attack against 15 girls and teachers walking to school in southern Afghanistan, a provincial governor said today.
"Several" of the arrested militants have confessed to taking part in the attack earlier this month, said Kandahar Gov Rahmatullah Raufi. He declined to say exactly how many had confessed.
High-ranking Taliban fighters paid the militants a total of USD 2,000 to carry out the attack, Raufi said. The attackers came from Pakistan but were Afghan nationals, said Doud Doud, an Interior Ministry official.
The attackers squirted acid from water bottles onto three groups of students and teachers walking to school in Kandahar city on Nov 12. Several girls suffered burns to the face and were hospitalised.
One teenager couldn't open her eyes days after the attack, which sparked condemnation from around the world.
Afghanistan s government called the attack "un-Islamic," while the UN labeled it "a hideous crime." US first lady Laura Bush decried it as cowardly.
Raufi said the suspects will be tried in open court after the investigation is completed.
One of the victims of the attack, a teacher named Nuskaal who was burned through her burqa, called today for harsh punishment.
"If these people are found guilty, the government should throw the same acid on these criminals. After that they should be hanged," said Nuskaal, who like many Afghans goes by one name.
