State of religious freedom in Pakistan considered “Dire”

Panelists at a religious freedom session on Pakistan called for reform of the nation’s laws, calling the situation for minorities dire. In June alone, 47 religious minorities were killed in Pakistan, according to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. The victims included an 18-year old Christian man tortured to death by police after he was suspected of kidnapping a Muslim woman, the commission said. “Basic law enforcement and legal reform are desperately needed,” Knox Thames, director of policy and …

Persecuted Ahmadiyya Muslims worship freely in the US

Inside the Bait-ul Qadir mosque on Fond du Lac Ave., a small group of men gathers before the midday prayer. They speak of the weather, their families, the inanities of daily affairs — but also the great mysteries of life and the path to salvation. “We are what we do. And in the next life, we will be judged by our actions,” said Rashid Ahmad, an imam, who at 90 commands the quiet respect of his fellow worshippers. “You cannot …

Malala, Salam and Zafrullah

As I looked at Dr Salam’s tombstone, I felt a pang of guilt and shame at what we have done to the Ahmadis in Pakistan. We have abolished their religious freedom and in the process our own The disgusting manner in which Malala Yousafzai has been targeted by a section of our society recently is upsetting but unsurprising. It is a bit of a local tradition, it seems, to abuse those who do something for the hapless people in this …

Ahmadi Muslims & Jews breakfast together

Fasting is an act of worship, a historic tradition and a test of obedience and holiness. Fasting deepens one’s connection to God. It encourages charity and care for the poor. And those who fast are helped to remember the blessings of life. Members of two faiths shared those and other thoughts on fasting at a rare gathering Tuesday evening in Lynwood, USA. After the sun was down, the event ended with a sumptuous meal where Muslims and Jews joined together …

July 4 And The Ahmadiyya – OpEd By Katrina Lantos Swett

Last Saturday, on June 29, I was honored to speak in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to the Ahmadiyya Muslim American Community’s 65th Annual Convention. For the past several years, the Ahmadiyya have chosen Harrisburg for their convention, just days before America’s July 4 celebration. Two hours east of Harrisburg is Philadelphia, where our Declaration of Independence was signed on that date. Less than an hour south is Gettysburg, where 150 years ago, in the days leading up to July 4, a crucial …

The Wrong Kind of Muslim – Putting an end to Islamic Terrorism

American Muslim author releases landmark book to put an end to the Taliban & Islamic terrorism The Wrong Kind of Muslim is a call to unite those of all faiths and of no faith in the struggle for universal freedom of conscience. Since 9/11, terrorists in Pakistan have killed over 40,000—and counting. Often risking his own life, Qasim Rashid journeys into the heart of that terrorism to unearth the untold story of those silenced by Taliban suicide bombings, secret police …

Khalifa of Islam Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad presented with key to Los Angeles

The Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat and Fifth Khalifa, Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad delivered the keynote address at a special reception held in his honour at the Montage in Beverly Hills, LA on 11 May 2013. More than 300 politicians, academics and community leaders attended, including the California Lieutenant Governor, mayoral candidate Eric Garcetti, and several members of the United States Congress. During the event the Los Angeles City Council presented Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad with the golden key …

Pakistan election: the 4m votes no one wants

As Pakistan’s election campaign enters its dying days, no town has escaped the attention of the country’s politicians as they crisscross the country, plastering every spare billboard, lamp-post and shop-front with posters bearing their heavily airbrushed faces. Except Rabwah, a sleepy riverside settlement in the critical battleground province of Punjab. It is home to 40,000 potential voters who could safely be relied upon to vote whichever way the town’s elders recommend – a particularly large and reliable example of what …

Chairman PTI Imran Khan tries to distance himself from Ahmadis

Chairman PTI Imran Khan who has a history of being soft on the Taliban has yet again made a controversial statement. The statement was issued in response to a viral video which showed Nadia Ramzan of PTI UK along with members of the Pakistani press meeting the head of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in London. In the meeting Ramzan asked his Holiness who would he vote for personally and what would he advise (to his followers). During the meeting, His Holiness …

Bomb blast kills 45 Shi’ite Muslims in Pakistan, Ahmadi man also among dead

In the killing fields of Pakistan, the bloodletting continues unabated. On March 03, the attack on the Shiite minority in the seaport city of Karachi claimed 45 lives, Women and children were among the dead. At least 150 others were critically wounded. The powerful explosion ripped through a crowd of Shiites as they left a mosque in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city. An Ahmadi muslim man was also among the dead. Mubashir Ahmad Abbasi of Abbas Town went missing after the …

Ahmadi Muslims meet US lawmakers on persecution in Pakistan

Washington: Members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community during their ‘Day on the Hill’ on last Friday briefed US lawmakers on their alleged persecution in Pakistan, official sources have said. Community leaders from 30 States visited nearly 400 Congressional offices on the Hill and met lawmakers and their staff on the issues of their concerns during their third annual event held on February 15, according to a media release issued on Wednesday. Delegates to the event briefed a broad array of …

Pakistan High Commission London hosts event ‘Remembering Dr Abdus Salam’

Pakistan High Commission London hosted an event in memory of Nobel Award winning Pakistani scientist Dr Abdus Salam. The event was organized by Pakistan High Commission and Pakistan Professional Forum . Dr Michael James Duff was the guest of honor at the event. Mr Duff is the Principal of the Faculty of Physical Sciences and Abdus Salam Chair of Theoretical Physics at Imperial College London. Other Speakers included Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon, Tom Kelly, Dr Farrukh Hussain & Dr …