In a disturbing interview with a Pakistan TV news channel, a 14-year old suicide bomber, Umar Fidayee, testified how he was recruited outside the gates of his school in North Waziristan.
The teenager is recovering in hospital from the injuries he received after detonating a hand grenade in the April 4 attack that killed 50 people at the shrine of 13th-century Muslim Sufi saint Sakhi Sarwar in Dera Ghazi Khan. It was Pakistan's deadliest bomb attack since November.
Covered in tubes and bandages, Fidayee told how a man he identified as Qari Muhammad Zafar convinced him to begin a life of militancy.
"He told me that all this education is useless and said 'become a fighter and you will go to heaven,’" Fidayee said.
With chilling detail, Fidayee also told he was instructed to make his attack 30 minutes after two other men had detonated their bombs so as to cause maximum carnage among those rushing to aid casualties of the first two blasts.
The 14-year old boy also said that up to 400 suicide bombers were presently being trained in North Waziristan, the premier al-Qaeda and Taliban fortress in Pakistan's tribal belt.
"Three hundred and fifty to 400 would-be suicide bombers are getting training in Mir Ali in North Waziristan," the youngster said. "I was trained for two months and saw many boys being trained there."
The teenager also begged fellow Pakistanis to "please forgive me."
"God has given me a new life but I am sad that we killed innocent people, innocent children," he said.
Fidayi also sent a strong message to other potential suicide bombers: "Please refuse to carry suicide attacks. Such attacks are forbidden in Islam."