COMMUNITY leaders in East Lancashire have condemned the massacre of 141 people, mostly children, in Pakistan.

Taliban gunmen stormed a military-run school in the north-western Pakistani city of Peshawar, killing 132 children and nine staff members before Pakistani officials declared a military operation to clear the school.

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An additional 121 students and three staff members were wounded.

Blackburn councillor Hussain Akhtar said many Pakistani heritage people in the area had links to Peshawar .

He said: “Peshawar already has problems and the British government has been working together with Pakistan to help with this.

“I condemn this happening completely, especially to children. They are Pakistan’s future.

“We are sending our condolences and we are going to provide what help we can.

“We want to help as much as we can and we are going to have a meeting to discuss what is needed.”

Burnley councillor Wajid Khan said: “Our condolences go out to all the victims in the area.

“Nobody I know has been directly affected or lost their lives, but I know people who have family friends who have been injured.

“There are discussions at the mosques at the moment about what’s happened, and it will be raised at Friday prayers.

“Support and guidance will be offered following the tragedy.

“The Peshawari Diaspora community have all been really affected and upset by what’s happened. There will be charitable donations going from Burnley, especially because it’s coming up to a difficult part of the year, with extreme cold weather.” Pakistani military spokesman, Asim Bajwa, said seven attackers, all wearing explosives vests, died in the assault.

It was not immediately clear if the militants were all killed by the soldiers or whether they blew themselves up, he said.

Mr Bajwa described an assault that seemed designed purely to terrorise the children rather than take anyone hostage to further the militant group’s aims.

“Their sole purpose, it seems, was to kill those innocent kids.That’s what they did,” he said.

The horrific attack, claimed by the Tehreek-e-Taliban, a Pakistani militant group trying to overthrow the government, began yesterday morning when the gunmen entered the school and started shooting at random.

n Dark day for humanity - Page Eight Army commandos quickly arrived at the scene and started exchanging fire with the gunmen. Students wearing green school uniforms could be seen fleeing the area on Pakistani television.