Leaders of minority Muslim sect accuse 'fanatics' of digging up baby's grave in Bangladesh
Our Foreign Staff
The TelegraphJuly 11, 2020, 10:21 AM
Leaders of a minority Muslim sect in Bangladesh on Saturday accused “fanatics” of digging up the body of a baby girl from a cemetery grave just hours after being buried and dumping it by a roadside.
The incident, which has sparked outrage on social media, is the latest targeting Ahmadi Muslims who many mainstream Muslims consider “infidels”.
The three-day-old girl was buried in a cemetery in Ghatura in the eastern district of Brahmanbaria on Thursday, local Ahmadi leader, S.M. Selim said.
“Fanatics” dug up the child's body shortly after and left it by a roadside, he added. A photo of the body laid on a straw mat on a road has been widely shared and drawn angry comments.
“Her crime is she was born to an Ahmadi Muslim family,” said Mr Selim.
Police in the district said no complaint had been made however and one officer said the incident had been resolved “peacefully”.
A local councillor, Azad Hazari, said he had intervened with police and the child was finally buried in another graveyard some 10 miles (16 kilometres) away.
A local cleric Munir Hossain denied the body had been exhumed but said local Muslims prevented the parents from burying the baby at the cemetery.
“It is against the Sharia to let an infidel be buried in a Muslim graveyard,” he told AFP. “The pious Muslims of the village would never let it happen.”
The Ahmadis are an offshoot of the mainstream Sunni Muslim branch but are controversial because they believe their founder was a prophet.
They have faced attacks and had religious rights taken away in some Muslim majority countries, including Pakistan. The 100,000 Ahmadis in Bangladesh have come under regular attack.
In recent months, hardline Muslims have threatened to hold protests demanding that the sect be declared “non-Muslims” by the authorities.
In 1999, a bomb at an Ahmadi mosque in the southern city of Khulna, killed at least eight worshippers.
A 2015 suicide blast at an Ahmadi mosque in the northwestern town of Bagmara injured three people.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/news/le ... 48717.html
Ahmadiyya's and Bahai's - Who are they?
Pakistan man accused of blasphemy shot dead in courtroom
Agence France-Presse
The TelegraphJuly 29, 2020, 9:49 AM
Pakistani man shot dead for alleged blasphemy inside a court room - BILAWAL ARBAB/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
A Pakistani man facing charges of blasphemy was shot dead in court on Wednesday as he awaited the start of his hearing, police said.
Tahir Ahmad Nasim, 47, was a member of a persecuted sect whose faith has been deemed heretical in Pakistan because they challenge the succession of the Prophet Mohammed.
He had been escorted into court by police in the northern city of Peshawar when a man opened fire with a pistol.
The victim died on the spot while his 24-year-old attacker was arrested.
"He was killed by a young man inside the court while waiting his turn to appear before the judge," official Misal Khan told AFP.
Mr Nasim was first arrested in April 2018 after a local accused him of blasphemy, a highly inflammatory charge in deeply conservative Pakistan that has sparked mob lynchings, vigilante murders and mass protests.
A conviction sometimes carries the death penalty.
He was a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community that many mainstream Islamic schools consider to hold blasphemous beliefs.
The group have been designated non-Muslims under Pakistan's constitution and have long been persecuted.
Senior police officer Mansur Amaan said authorities were investigating how the attacker managed to get his hands on a firearm inside a courtroom.
"He might have pulled the gun out of a policeman's holster," Mr Amaan said.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/pak ... 04746.html
Agence France-Presse
The TelegraphJuly 29, 2020, 9:49 AM
Pakistani man shot dead for alleged blasphemy inside a court room - BILAWAL ARBAB/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
A Pakistani man facing charges of blasphemy was shot dead in court on Wednesday as he awaited the start of his hearing, police said.
Tahir Ahmad Nasim, 47, was a member of a persecuted sect whose faith has been deemed heretical in Pakistan because they challenge the succession of the Prophet Mohammed.
He had been escorted into court by police in the northern city of Peshawar when a man opened fire with a pistol.
The victim died on the spot while his 24-year-old attacker was arrested.
"He was killed by a young man inside the court while waiting his turn to appear before the judge," official Misal Khan told AFP.
Mr Nasim was first arrested in April 2018 after a local accused him of blasphemy, a highly inflammatory charge in deeply conservative Pakistan that has sparked mob lynchings, vigilante murders and mass protests.
A conviction sometimes carries the death penalty.
He was a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community that many mainstream Islamic schools consider to hold blasphemous beliefs.
The group have been designated non-Muslims under Pakistan's constitution and have long been persecuted.
Senior police officer Mansur Amaan said authorities were investigating how the attacker managed to get his hands on a firearm inside a courtroom.
"He might have pulled the gun out of a policeman's holster," Mr Amaan said.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/pak ... 04746.html
Pakistan seeks to block US-based website of minority Ahmadis
KATHY GANNON
Associated Press Thu, January 21, 2021, 7:48 AM
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan has ordered a U.S.-based website propagating the faith of Pakistan's minority Ahmadis shut down over allegedly blasphemous content, one of the site's managers said Thursday.
Harris Zafar said Pakistan’s Telecommunication Authority earlier this month issued a legal notice for him and fellow American Amjad Mahmood Khan, who also manages Trueislam.com, demanding that the site be shut down.
Zafar said the website is based in the U.S., where both he and Khan live and work, and called Pakistan's action “a brazen act of suppression of freedom of expression and freedom of religion."
“All content is U.S. based and all activities are in the U.S. as well,” said Zafar. “There is nothing about Pakistan on the site. ”
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority did not immediately respond to an AP request for comment and Zafar and Khan's website is not available in Pakistan.
Zafar, who lives in Portland, Oregon but has relatives in Pakistan, said in an email to The Associated Press that he and Khan were also threatened with a $3.1 million fine and warned of charges under Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy law, which can carry the death penalty for insulting Islam.
Blasphemy has been a contentious issue in Pakistan where domestic and international human rights groups say blasphemy allegations have often been used to intimidate religious minorities and to settle personal scores.
Pakistan’s parliament declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974. Since then, they have repeatedly been targeted by Islamic extremists in the Muslim-majority nation. An Ahmadi can get 10 years in prison for claiming to be a Muslim.
The legal notice accuses Zafar and Khan, a lawyer, of violating Pakistani laws for hosting and disseminating content on their website related to members the Ahmadi community who are “not allowed to preach or propagate their faith or invite others to accept their faith."
Zafar said he and Khan were both born in the U.S. and did not flee persecution in Pakistan, though he stressed they “do get involved in helping persecuted Ahmadis in Pakistan and other parts of the world.”
The Ahmadi faith was established on the Indian subcontinent in the 19th century by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, whose followers believe he was the messiah that was promised by the Prophet Muhammad. Pakistan’s parliament declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974. Since then, they have repeatedly been targeted by Islamic extremists in the Muslim-majority nation.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/news/pa ... 16795.html
KATHY GANNON
Associated Press Thu, January 21, 2021, 7:48 AM
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan has ordered a U.S.-based website propagating the faith of Pakistan's minority Ahmadis shut down over allegedly blasphemous content, one of the site's managers said Thursday.
Harris Zafar said Pakistan’s Telecommunication Authority earlier this month issued a legal notice for him and fellow American Amjad Mahmood Khan, who also manages Trueislam.com, demanding that the site be shut down.
Zafar said the website is based in the U.S., where both he and Khan live and work, and called Pakistan's action “a brazen act of suppression of freedom of expression and freedom of religion."
“All content is U.S. based and all activities are in the U.S. as well,” said Zafar. “There is nothing about Pakistan on the site. ”
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority did not immediately respond to an AP request for comment and Zafar and Khan's website is not available in Pakistan.
Zafar, who lives in Portland, Oregon but has relatives in Pakistan, said in an email to The Associated Press that he and Khan were also threatened with a $3.1 million fine and warned of charges under Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy law, which can carry the death penalty for insulting Islam.
Blasphemy has been a contentious issue in Pakistan where domestic and international human rights groups say blasphemy allegations have often been used to intimidate religious minorities and to settle personal scores.
Pakistan’s parliament declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974. Since then, they have repeatedly been targeted by Islamic extremists in the Muslim-majority nation. An Ahmadi can get 10 years in prison for claiming to be a Muslim.
The legal notice accuses Zafar and Khan, a lawyer, of violating Pakistani laws for hosting and disseminating content on their website related to members the Ahmadi community who are “not allowed to preach or propagate their faith or invite others to accept their faith."
Zafar said he and Khan were both born in the U.S. and did not flee persecution in Pakistan, though he stressed they “do get involved in helping persecuted Ahmadis in Pakistan and other parts of the world.”
The Ahmadi faith was established on the Indian subcontinent in the 19th century by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, whose followers believe he was the messiah that was promised by the Prophet Muhammad. Pakistan’s parliament declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974. Since then, they have repeatedly been targeted by Islamic extremists in the Muslim-majority nation.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/news/pa ... 16795.html
Iranian government orders teachers to identify children of persecuted Baha'i minority
Verity Bowman
The Telegraph Sat, March 13, 2021, 10:04 AM
The Iranian government is ordering teachers to identify children of the persecuted Baha'i minority to convert them to Islam, leaked documents show.
The move forms part of a plan to intensify the monitoring and suppression of the Baha’i people, one of the most persecuted religious minorities in the world.
Local authorities in the city of Sari, in the northern province of Mazandaran, plan to “conduct strict controls” on Baha’i people and track “their operations”, according to a new directive given to officials.
Children are specifically singled out, with teachers directed to “identify Baha’i students” and “bring them into Islam”.
“Clear plans to change children’s beliefs is a galling violation of human rights,” said Diane Ala’i, the Representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Natins in Geneva.
The Baháʼí faith originated in Iran during the 19th century, but now has an estimated six million followers around the world.
According to the UN there are about 350,000 Baha'i in the Islamic Republic, making them the country’s biggest religious minority, but they are considered heretical by the Iranian regime.
The document, handed to The League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran and the International Federation for Human Rights, represents an escalation of Iran’s ongoing war against religious minorities.
They warn that it outlines a “detailed plan” to “rigorously” control aspects of the community, including their “public and private meetings”.
The Commission on Ethnicities, Sects and Religions in Sari allegedly issued the document, which operates under Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, a body chaired by the county’s president.
It is thought to stem “from national government entities at the highest levels”, according to Ms Ala’i, and “suggests that similar meetings and directives about the Baha’is may be occurring across Iran”.
“Despite constant claims from the government that Baha’is are not persecuted for their beliefs, the Iranian authorities have once again exposed their true intentions.”
Local officials at all levels received the document, including police and military organizations, educational institutions and economic bodies.
Although Iran discriminates against many religions, including Christianity, the plight of the Baha'is is particularly severe.
Over the last 40 years billions of dollars worth of land and property is thought to have been seized under Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Fire bombings, imprisonment and bans on employment in the public sector are common, as well as systematic attacks. Iranian authorities removed the Baha'i faith as a recognized religion on national ID cards last year.
Recently universities were ordered to uphold a policy prohibiting Baha’is from enrolling. The ban stems from a 1991 memorandum designed to systematically prevent their “progress and development” and was signed by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
In 2016, a directive issued by Mazandaran officials resulted in mass Baha’i shop closures across the province, leaving economic devastation in its wake. It was approved by the Guardian Council, one of the most influential bodies in Iran.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/news/ir ... 25542.html
Verity Bowman
The Telegraph Sat, March 13, 2021, 10:04 AM
The Iranian government is ordering teachers to identify children of the persecuted Baha'i minority to convert them to Islam, leaked documents show.
The move forms part of a plan to intensify the monitoring and suppression of the Baha’i people, one of the most persecuted religious minorities in the world.
Local authorities in the city of Sari, in the northern province of Mazandaran, plan to “conduct strict controls” on Baha’i people and track “their operations”, according to a new directive given to officials.
Children are specifically singled out, with teachers directed to “identify Baha’i students” and “bring them into Islam”.
“Clear plans to change children’s beliefs is a galling violation of human rights,” said Diane Ala’i, the Representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Natins in Geneva.
The Baháʼí faith originated in Iran during the 19th century, but now has an estimated six million followers around the world.
According to the UN there are about 350,000 Baha'i in the Islamic Republic, making them the country’s biggest religious minority, but they are considered heretical by the Iranian regime.
The document, handed to The League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran and the International Federation for Human Rights, represents an escalation of Iran’s ongoing war against religious minorities.
They warn that it outlines a “detailed plan” to “rigorously” control aspects of the community, including their “public and private meetings”.
The Commission on Ethnicities, Sects and Religions in Sari allegedly issued the document, which operates under Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, a body chaired by the county’s president.
It is thought to stem “from national government entities at the highest levels”, according to Ms Ala’i, and “suggests that similar meetings and directives about the Baha’is may be occurring across Iran”.
“Despite constant claims from the government that Baha’is are not persecuted for their beliefs, the Iranian authorities have once again exposed their true intentions.”
Local officials at all levels received the document, including police and military organizations, educational institutions and economic bodies.
Although Iran discriminates against many religions, including Christianity, the plight of the Baha'is is particularly severe.
Over the last 40 years billions of dollars worth of land and property is thought to have been seized under Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Fire bombings, imprisonment and bans on employment in the public sector are common, as well as systematic attacks. Iranian authorities removed the Baha'i faith as a recognized religion on national ID cards last year.
Recently universities were ordered to uphold a policy prohibiting Baha’is from enrolling. The ban stems from a 1991 memorandum designed to systematically prevent their “progress and development” and was signed by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
In 2016, a directive issued by Mazandaran officials resulted in mass Baha’i shop closures across the province, leaving economic devastation in its wake. It was approved by the Guardian Council, one of the most influential bodies in Iran.
https://currently.att.yahoo.com/news/ir ... 25542.html