It was August 14, 1984. I was only two-years-old. My father decorated the veranda of our small house with lights and green buntings. My parents were excited, as were my elder brother and I. Though I was too young to remember, pictures of that day bring on a strong sensation of déjà vu. Yet, and sadly, before the following Independence Day, we had to leave Pakistan. Persecution, which gained momentum under President Ziaul Haq, forced many Ahmadis to leave for …
A graffiti attack on a Shia mosque in Bradford is one of the first visible examples of sectarian tension in Britain’s Muslim communities. Users of the Hussania Islamic Centre arrived at the building one morning in June to find that someone had written in spray paint on the wall: “Shia Kafir”.
At a religious conference in Birmingham three months ago, a bearded cleric wearing a white turban shook with anger as he wagged a finger at his audience. The over-amplified voice of Mumtaz ul Haq echoed around the room while he hectored his audience about the differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims. This was no thoughtful theological discussion, however. Mr Haq’s lecture, available on YouTube under the title Shia Exposed, condemned the minority denomination as non-Muslims. “Such people are not just …
Religious sectarianism is on the rise in Britain’s Muslim community and threatens to spill over into violent crime and terrorism, leading clerics warned yesterday. An investigation by The Times has found a sharp but largely hidden rise in sectarian tensions between the minority Shia community and the dominant Sunni groups, driven by the long, bitter war in Syria.
The UK’s longest standing and largest Muslim convention, Jalsa Salana, returns to Hampshire for its 49th edition from Friday the 21st to Sunday the 23rd of August 2015. Over 30,000 Muslim and non-Muslim guests from the UK and around the world including royalty, clergy from a range of faiths, ministers of states, academics and dignitaries will take part.
America’s oldest Muslim community plans to gather in Pennsylvania for a conference starting Friday. The 67th Annual Jalsa Salana Convention starts on August 14th and runs through August 16th at the Pennsylvania Farm Show complex in Harrisburg,PA. The three day event is being hosted by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA.Conference guests include Members of Congress, the U-S State Department, Guatemala’s Congress, and Mali’s ambassador to the U-S.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Sri Lanka will launch Sinhala Translation with Arabic Text of the Holy Qur’an at Colombo National Education & Book Fair to be held at Public Library Premises, Colombo. The publication will be displayed as a main feature of the event at Stall No. 8 and 9.This week-long book fair, commencing July 28, will also have on display the previous copies of the Holy Qura’an translations by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at in 73 languages of the world. …
Pakistani police say they have shot dead Malik Ishaq, the leader of banned Sunni militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. Ishaq, who had been detained last week, was in a prison convoy in Punjab province when supporters opened fire in an attempt to free him, said police. They said Ishaq was killed in a gun fight along with his two sons and 11 militants in Muzaffargarh district.
Hot dogs. Bodybuilding. Leonardo DiCaprio’s Titanic hairdo. They’re all Western fads that have gripped the Afghan capital at some point in the past few years. But these days it’s nonalcoholic beer, a popular thirst-quencher among young men eager to keep up with Western tastes in a country where alcohol is forbidden (but readily available, for a price). The alcohol-free beer is affordable and widely sold in Kabul’s convenience shops and bazaars, thanks to supplies apparently smuggled off foreign military bases.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA sent out the following statement regarding Thursday’s shooting in Chattanooga: The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA urges calm after deadly shootings in Chattanooga, Tennessee on military facilities. Reports allege Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez opened fire at two military facilities, killing four U.S. Marines and wounding several others.
Nation’s oldest Muslim youth group condemns the shooting, offers prayers to victims The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (AMYA), the boys and young men’s association of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, strongly condemns today’s shootings in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Our condolences and prayers go out to the victims and their families, and our prayer is for peace and justice to be reinstated. “As we complete a month focused on fasting, reflection and service to our fellow countryman, I am very saddened to hear …
Rafiq Hayat, national president of the moderate Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, says that moderate Muslims fear and despise Islamic State barbarism just as much as the rest of the British public. Security at the community’s huge mosque in Morden, Surrey, which can house 10,000 worshippers, has been stepped up to airport standards with metal and bomb detectors amid threats against the moderates in Britain and around the world. Now Mr Hayat says that it is time for responsible Muslims to react …