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Asia

Ahmadi Graves Desecrated in Lahore

More than 100 tombstones were desecrated by unidentified men this past Monday morning. This incident took place in a graveyard belonging to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Model Town, Lahore. Witnesses state that a group of about a dozen men, who were wearing masks and carrying weapons, entered the graveyard during early morning hours. Some of the men carried pistols, while others carried larger weapons. The intruders removed the tombstones from the graves and broke them. They also informed the caretakers …

Pakistan Terror attack victim to go under surgery in UK

A terror attack victim from Britain is to undergo a rare operation to remove – via his nose – a bullet that is embedded in his head. The operation to take place in a renowned hospital in Birmingham is possible thanks to a new tool called Cyclops, which allows surgeons to look around corners through a small endoscope inserted into the nose.  It has already been used to remove tumours- but this is the first time it is being used to remove a bullet …

Local Ahmadi leader killed in drive-by Shooting

Mukarram Naeem Ahmed Gondal, president of Jamaat Ahmadiyya’s Orangi Town chapter, was shot by two men on a motorbike as he was leaving his residence for work. Gondal, 52, was working as an assistant director for the State Bank of Pakistan. He leaves behind his wife among the bereaved. SITE Police Station SHO Rao Rafique said that an FIR has been lodged by the police and the investigations are underway. He added that since the FIR was filed against unidentified persons, …

Ahmadiyya Mosque minarets demolished in Kharian

The religious persecution of Ahmadis continued on July 10 when police authorities, under the supervision of DSP Sultan Meeran, desecrated Bait-ul-Hamd located near Kabari Bazar, Pul Nullah in Kharian, according to the spokesperson of Ahmadiyya Community. The instructions were allegedly carried out on the application filed by Saqib Shakeel Ghazi, Syed Iftikhar Kazmi and other members of Tehrik-e-Tahaffuz-e-Islam under Section 298 B and C of the 1984 ordinance. “The police officials accompanied by Town Municipal Administration (TMA) came during the …

Pakistan blocks Ahmadiyya community’s website

According to indepdent reports Pakistan’s largest ISP PTCL has blocked access to alislam.org the official website of the persecuted Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. This is not the first time Pakistan has used its internet censorship system to block access to the community’s website. In a similar drive by the Pakistan Government in 2008 access to the persecution.org was restricted. ThePersecution.org maintains records & reports on the worldwide persecution of Ahmadis in various countries. Pakistan has already been accused of excessive internet …

US lawmakers show support for Ahmadiyya

WASHINGTON — US lawmakers on Wednesday offered support for the global leader of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community, which has faced discrimination and violence in Pakistan and Indonesia. Lawmakers welcomed Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, the leader or khalifa of the minority Muslim group, in the US Capitol complex and praised the sect for supporting inter-religious peace and efforts such as blood donation drives. Senator Robert Casey, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, praised the religious leader for the “demonstrated commitment that you have …

Persecution of the Ahmadiyya Community In Pakistan – A Historical Perspective

Summary The paper analyses, through Pakistan’s history, a State sponsored persecution of the Ahmadiyaa community in Pakistan focusing on its discriminatory anti-Ahmadi laws that have made this religious minority sect the most vulnerable and oppressed community of Pakistan. Background; Ahmadis in Pakistan and the beginning of discrimination The calls for declaring Ahmadis a non-Muslim minority began since 1948 when a Muslim group called ‘Ahrar’ demanded removal of Ahmadi officials from their government posts including Pakistan’s Ahmadi Foreign Minister Zafarullah Khan.Jamaat …

Silence of the lambs: waiting for justice in the Land of the Pure

They only came to pray. They paid with their lives. Friday Prayers on 28th May 2010 for the Ahmadis of Lahore will always be remembered in blood and tears. It was supposed to be a day like any other. The Friday congregation of the community gathered as usual to offer their devotion. Immaculately dressed, heads bowed before God, serenity in the air. Then terror struck. Armed men with suicide vests and grenades descended like demons on two of the major …

Saudi Arabia to its women: Drop dead

Attention all Saudi women: If you need assistance of any kind, you are on your own. The government of Saudi Arabia made this clear to all women residing in their country when, late last month, it chose to arrest a 75-year-old widowed woman for being in the company of unrelated males who were simply helping her. In an embarrassing display of law enforcement, the Saudi government convicted and sentenced the widow to 40 lashes and four months imprisonment for mingling …

Ahmadi women being harassed for ‘violating constitution’

LAHORE – Two female faculty member of Post-Graduate College of Nursing, Birdwood Road, are getting life threats for being “members of the Ahmadiya community”, with religious elements inside the college alleging that the two were preaching their faith inside the college, Pakistan Today learnt on Monday. Sources said some elements inside the college were also coming with weapons to “teach a lesson” to these female teachers, while the teachers in question are seeking the government’s help. Sources said that it …

HRW urges Pakistan to Prosecute Ahmadi Massacre Suspects

New York – Pakistan’s federal and provincial governments should bring to justice those responsible for the May 2010 attacks on Ahmadiyya mosques that killed 94 worshipers, Human Rights Watch said today. On May 28, 2010, militants attacked two Ahmadiyya places of worship in the city of Lahore with guns, grenades, and suicide bombs, killing 94 people and wounding well over 100. The Punjabi Taliban, a local affiliate of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (the Pakistani Taliban or TTP), claimed responsibility. Two men were …

Pakistan: Human Rights Report for 2011

The U.S. Department of State has released the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011,  The report by U.S. Department of State is submitted to the U.S. Congress. This years report again highlights the plight of minorities including Ahmadis in Pakistan. The report makes the following statements about Ahmadis : Disturbing trends include an increase in anti-Semitism, and continued persecution of other religious minorities, including Ahmadis, Baha’is, Tibetan Buddhists, Christians, Jews, and others. Minority prisoners generally were afforded …