It takes quite some courage to stand your ground when death stares you in the face. Not many people think about doing that, especially when it means sacrificing yourself to save those around you. 15-year-old Aitzaz Hasan exemplified nobility when he thwarted a suicide bomber from attacking his school.
Alongside the Kohat-Hangu road, there lie villages where violence and militancy had become a new normal. The area is called Ibrahimzai, a Shia-dominated region in Hangu. On January 6, 2014, Aitzaz was with his friends outside the school. He spotted a man sporting a suicided vest. He ran toward him despite being stopped by his peers. He confronted the bomber who detonated his vest, causing the teen’s death.
Maybe Aitzaz did not grasp what his action would entail or the meaning of death. Or maybe he did know, but that did not stop him. Whatever it was, the fact is that he surrendered his own life to save 2000 others. It has been six years since the incident, but his people still remember him for his bravery and courage that is rare to be seen in this day and age.
Late Aitzaz Hasan’s picture placed next to Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s portrait at Hasan’s school
At the age where most kids worry about their school tests or getting detentions, he had to make a decision most adults would hesitate to do. Even a military man undergoes extensive training to get prepared to lay down his life for the country. It is unlikely for a teenager to endanger his own life to protect others. But he lived in a place where violence has become a norm.
People there have given up on the state after facing years and years of sectarian violence. These people have decided to protect themselves on their own. There were threats to the schools back then, these threats remain today. These incidents of militancy might burn short and bright on our TV screens, but they are more than just news for people in these areas. Their kids talk about bombings and similar life-threatening situations. Aitzaz’s friends would joke that because of his physique, he would not be able to run away and save his life. And he would reply that when a Khudkush (suicide bomber) will come, they all will run away and he will fight. Even he didn’t know how true his words would prove to be!
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