Grieving families in Peshawar are demanding accountability after a roof collapse at a private school killed 32 children and a teacher on Thursday morning. The victims, most under 14, were in class when the building gave way, trapping dozens under concrete and debris.
Muhammad Wahab, a tailor who lost his 11-year-old nephew Hammad, told AFP on Friday: "The parents of all these children must receive justice. I appeal to our rulers." He described Hammad as a promising student who was "doing well in school" before the tragedy.
Another parent, Asadullah, said he lost a son, a nephew, and three other close relatives. "The children were good students and often achieved top positions in their classes," he said. "They happily went to school every day."
Chaotic rescue and unanswered questions
Residents and rescuers described scenes of panic as they scrambled to pull children from the rubble. Sohail, a local man, said his niece arrived home screaming that the school had collapsed. "When I arrived at the scene, I saw around 10 to 15 children trapped beneath the rubble, with debris piled up to their necks. We quickly pulled them out," he recounted.
Emergency services released images of rescue workers in high-visibility vests digging through debris, collecting school bags and books scattered among the wreckage.
A senior official in Peshawar told AFP that initial reports pointed to "weak infrastructure" as the cause. The school owner has been detained, the official said on condition of anonymity.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed "deep sorrow and grief over the loss of precious lives" in a post on X. President Asif Ali Zardari called the collapse a "heartbreaking tragedy."
Building collapses are tragically common in Pakistan, a country of more than 240 million people, where poor safety standards and substandard construction materials are widespread. In June, over a dozen children were killed when a roof collapsed at a tutoring centre in Lahore.
While this tragedy occurred far from Europe, it echoes concerns about building safety and infrastructure resilience that resonate across the continent. European engineers and urban planners often study such disasters to inform stricter building codes, particularly in regions with aging infrastructure. The European Union has funded projects to improve construction standards in South Asia, but more needs to be done.
As the families in Peshawar mourn, their demand for justice is a reminder that accountability is essential to prevent future loss of life. The detention of the school owner is a first step, but many will be watching to see if it leads to meaningful change.
