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Monday, March 21, 2011 |
Year 2010, bloodiest chapter in history of Ahmedi killings
By Afnan Khan
LAHORE: The year 2010 witnessed a series of intermittent persecutions of Ahmedis and can be labelled as the bloodiest chapter in the history of the minority’s killings in Pakistan with an unprecedented number of assassinations including a twin terrorist attack on their worship places in Lahore.
At least 98 people were gunned down for following Ahmedis’ religious beliefs, while 86 were brutally killed and 124 injured when terrorists attacked their worship places in the city last year on May 28. Separately, several others survived assassination bids during numerous incidents in different parts of the country.
Among the victims of the target killings was Professor Muhammad Yusuf, who was murdered by terrorists in his own locality.
Yusuf ran a small, charitable school at his house where he provided education to the poor and downtrodden children of Ferozwala area, irrespective of their colour, creed or caste. However, after Yusuf’s assassination, his own family was forced to flee to Sri Lanka in order to survive.
Separately, as per the annual report issued by the community’s information office, at least three Ahmedis were wrongfully booked under the blasphemy law and 67 others were unjustly charged with and dragged into religion-based cases.
The report also accused the civil judge Mirpur for sentencing three Ahmedis, namely Masood Ahmad Chandio, Abdul Razzaq and Abdul Ghani to three years of imprisonment in March 2010 under Ahmedi specific law. Meanwhile, three others, namely Muhammad Qasim, Mazahir Ahmad and Ahmad Yar, were arrested under PPC 298-C and 295-C on false accusation of preaching and blasphemy in Sargodha.
Other incidents involving injustices to Ahmedi citizens include handing over the control of an Ahmadiyya worship place in Ahmad Nagar to non-Ahmedis on January 14 last year as per the orders of the Chiniot District Co-ordination Officer and the denial of shelter and food to the flood affected Ahmedis in the ravaged areas of southern Punjab.
LAHORE: The year 2010 witnessed a series of intermittent persecutions of Ahmedis and can be labelled as the bloodiest chapter in the history of the minority’s killings in Pakistan with an unprecedented number of assassinations including a twin terrorist attack on their worship places in Lahore.
At least 98 people were gunned down for following Ahmedis’ religious beliefs, while 86 were brutally killed and 124 injured when terrorists attacked their worship places in the city last year on May 28. Separately, several others survived assassination bids during numerous incidents in different parts of the country.
Among the victims of the target killings was Professor Muhammad Yusuf, who was murdered by terrorists in his own locality.
Yusuf ran a small, charitable school at his house where he provided education to the poor and downtrodden children of Ferozwala area, irrespective of their colour, creed or caste. However, after Yusuf’s assassination, his own family was forced to flee to Sri Lanka in order to survive.
Separately, as per the annual report issued by the community’s information office, at least three Ahmedis were wrongfully booked under the blasphemy law and 67 others were unjustly charged with and dragged into religion-based cases.
The report also accused the civil judge Mirpur for sentencing three Ahmedis, namely Masood Ahmad Chandio, Abdul Razzaq and Abdul Ghani to three years of imprisonment in March 2010 under Ahmedi specific law. Meanwhile, three others, namely Muhammad Qasim, Mazahir Ahmad and Ahmad Yar, were arrested under PPC 298-C and 295-C on false accusation of preaching and blasphemy in Sargodha.
Other incidents involving injustices to Ahmedi citizens include handing over the control of an Ahmadiyya worship place in Ahmad Nagar to non-Ahmedis on January 14 last year as per the orders of the Chiniot District Co-ordination Officer and the denial of shelter and food to the flood affected Ahmedis in the ravaged areas of southern Punjab.
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