Peshawar, Pakistan (CNN) On the principal's desk at the Peshawar's Government High School for Boys sits a screen beaming surveillance video from around the campus.

In one of the desk's drawers, within easy reach of Abdul Saeed's right hand, lies a fully loaded pistol.

A teacher for 15 years, Saeed argues that bringing a gun to school reassures his students, who are still terrified after a brazen attack on the Army Public School and Degree College in December, when Taliban militants stormed the building and massacred dozens of students during a six-hour siege.

More than 100 people were injured, many with gunshot wounds, according to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province Information Minister Mushtaq Ghani.

Peshawar school aftermath – More than 100 people were injured, many with gunshot wounds, according to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province Information Minister Mushtaq Ghani.

On a typical day, the school is home to about 1,100 students and staff, most of them sons and daughters of army personnel from around Peshawar.

Peshawar school aftermath – On a typical day, the school is home to about 1,100 students and staff, most of them sons and daughters of army personnel from around Peshawar.

"Even the children are dying on the frontline in the war against terror," Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told CNN. "The smaller the coffin, the heavier it is to carry. ... It's a very, very tragic day."

Peshawar school aftermath – "Even the children are dying on the frontline in the war against terror," Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told CNN. "The smaller the coffin, the heavier it is to carry. ... It's a very, very tragic day."

The attack drew sharp condemnation from top Pakistani officials, who vowed that the country wouldn't stop its war against the Taliban.

Peshawar school aftermath – The attack drew sharp condemnation from top Pakistani officials, who vowed that the country wouldn't stop its war against the Taliban.

Most of those killed in the attack were children.

Peshawar school aftermath – Most of those killed in the attack were children.

Bullet holes litter the walls of the school.

Peshawar school aftermath – Bullet holes litter the walls of the school.

A soldier walks outside the Pakistani school that was attacked by members of the Pakistani Taliban on Tuesday, December 16. CNN cameraman Javed Iqbal took these photos in the aftermath of the attack, which killed more than 140 people.

"They would look to the door every time they heard a sound. Now when they see me wearing a gun, they need not worry and can focus on the task at hand, which is to educate themselves," Saeed says.

School security increased

Barbed wire, surveillance cameras and snipers have become a common sight in the schools of this Pakistani city. Private schools in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkua, which lies along Pakistan's northwest frontier, have been instructed by the government to arrange security guards and metal detectors.

School officials remain tight-lipped about the threats they've received from militants, but stories have emerged of empty coffins being sent to principals as an ominous suggestion of the danger that could lie ahead.

Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Soldiers patrol the streets in Peshawar, Pakistan, near a school that was attacked by the Pakistani Taliban on Tuesday, December 16. Militants stormed the military-run school in northwest Pakistan, killing more than 140 people, most of them children. More than 100 people were injured. Hide Caption 1 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Relatives carry the body of a victim during his funeral procession. Hide Caption 2 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A victim's coffin is carried from an ambulance. Hide Caption 3 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – The uncle and cousin of injured student Mohammad Baqair comfort him as he mourns the death of his mother, a teacher who was killed in the attack. Hide Caption 4 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A man comforts a student who survived the attack. Hide Caption 5 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Parents escort their children away from the school. Hide Caption 6 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A wounded student receives treatment at a Peshawar hospital. Hide Caption 7 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Pakistani soldiers hold positions close to the school. All the militants in the attack were eventually killed, a police official said. Hide Caption 8 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Pakistani soldiers take position near the site of the attack. Hide Caption 9 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A student is wheeled into a hospital in Peshawar. Hide Caption 10 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A man and woman rush to a Peshawar hospital treating victims of the attack. Hide Caption 11 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Family members wait outside the school. Hide Caption 12 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – People gather at a hospital where victims were being treated. Hide Caption 13 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Pakistani soldiers position themselves at a fence near the besieged school. Hide Caption 14 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A Pakistani soldier clears the area outside the school. Hide Caption 15 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – An injured student lies in bed at a Peshawar hospital after the attack. Hide Caption 16 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A hospital security guard helps an injured student at the school. Hide Caption 17 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Parents leave with their children near the site of the attack. Hide Caption 18 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A plainclothes officer escorts rescued students away from the school. Hide Caption 19 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Pakistani troops reach the site of the attack. Hide Caption 20 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Volunteers carry a student at a hospital in Peshawar. Hide Caption 21 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – An injured girl gets rushed to a hospital in Peshawar. Hide Caption 22 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A man comforts a student standing at the bedside of an injured boy. Hide Caption 23 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – A Pakistani soldier takes position on a bunker close to the besieged school. Hide Caption 24 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Relatives of a student killed in the attack mourn over the student's body. Hide Caption 25 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – Hospital staff transport an injured student in Peshawar. Hide Caption 26 of 27 Photos: Photos: Taliban attack Pakistani school Taliban attack Pakistani school – The body of a victim lies at a hospital in Peshawar. Hide Caption 27 of 27

After the brutal attack, Pakistan Taliban spokesman Mohammed Khurrassani told CNN the bloodshed was revenge for the killing of hundreds of innocent tribesmen during repeated army operations in provinces including South Waziristan, North Waziristan and the Khyber Agency.

Last month, the provincial government pledged to spend seven billion rupees ($69 million) on enhancing security at government run schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhua. However, KPK information minister Mushtaq Ghani says it is still not enough prevent in an attack on the 35,000 government-run schools in the province.

So, in an extraordinary measure, the KPK government has allowed teachers with firearm licenses to keep guns at school.

Why glorify guns?

Umar Daraz, a mild mannered primary school teacher who has been a member of the Executive Council of Peshawar's Primary Teacher Association for more than 20 years, is shocked by the decision.

"Why would you glorify guns?" he asks. "If teachers take guns into classroom it glorifies this deadly weapon in the eyes of children, and in the future it could inspire them to seek out guns, misuse them and cause more tragedies to take place."

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"Teachers are meant to teach," he adds.

At a shooting range in Peshawar, the Khyber Pakhtunkua police force has started basic weapon training sessions for teachers interested in learning how to use firearms.

Faisal Mukhtar, a police superintendent, says that one of the reasons given for arming teachers is so they can hold militants at bay during a potential attack until security forces arrive.

Around 20 female teachers have already received training from Inspector Rozia Altaf. Most had never held a gun before.

"The tragedy of December 16 has emboldened these women," Altaf tells CNN. "Most of them were mothers and they were helpless then -- they will be never helpless again."

Regardless of the day's training, Mukhtar says none of the teachers involved have expressed interest in obtaining a gun license.

'Extraordinary times'

Back at the principal's office, Saeed places the gun on his desk and shares his experience of volunteering at hospitals on the day of the attack.

His eyes tear up as he recalls seeing schoolboys as young as 12 with bullet wounds that would not be uncommon on a battlefield.

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He brushes away those who criticize the decision to bring in guns to schools, saying "these are extraordinary times and we must deal with them in extraordinary ways.

"After what I have seen I refuse to be helpless and unarmed if anyone comes in to attack my students the way [the militants] did in December.

"We were once warriors of the chalk and the blackboard. Now we must be soldiers at war and fight for the cause of education and a brighter future for our children."