Adil Najam and Owais Mughal
The forces of hate are attacking Pakistan again.
This time targeting Ahmadi worshipers in two separate locations in Lahore, killing over 70 people, injuring more than 100, taking others hostage, and spreading their terrorizing message of hate in society.
There can be nothing but rage and loathing for those who kill for the pleasure of killing. Who kill for the purpose of spreading terror and mayhem. Who kill to hide their own inadequacies of faith. Who breed in the fires of hate and kill as an expression of hate. These are the enemies of Pakistan. The enemies of the very religion they think they are safeguarding with venomous hate. They are, indeed, the enemies of humanity.
Ultimately, the person who is killed is not a Pakistani or Indian or American or even Muslim or Jew or Christian or even Barelvi or Ahmadi or Wahabi. Ultimately, the person killed is just another human. And the person who kills, is not. Because in the very act of killing for hate he has stripped himself of that distinction, of his own humanity.
Words escape us, once again. What can we say that we did not say about Karachi, about Quetta, about Swat, about Peshawar, about Islamabad, about Kohat – indeed about Lahore itself, again and again.
What can one add except to wipe the tears from ones eyes, to say a silent prayer – a silent prayer that society’s silence over these atrocities may break. Because when the good amongst us go silent, then only the hate of the bad resounds.
Here are the details as reported by Dawn:
Gunmen attacked worshippers from the Ahmadi community in two worship places of Lahore on Friday, taking hostages and killing at least 70 people, officials said. The gunmen opened fire shortly after Friday prayers and threw what could have been grenades at two Ahmadi worship places in residential neighbourhoods in Pakistan’s cultural capital.
Sajjad Bhutta, deputy commissioner of Lahore, said at least 70 people had been killed in the twin attacks on worship places in Garhi Shahu and Model Town. A total of 78 were injured. The death toll at Garhi Shahu was higher, Bhutta said, because three attackers blew themselves up with suicide vests packed with explosives when police tried to enter the building. Police are still searching the area as two attackers were still at large.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani strongly condemned the attacks, expressing “deep sorrow and grief over the loss of precious livesâ€. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said the incidents would generate greater resolve to combat extremism. “It’s a reminder to the nation that Pakistan will achieve its destiny only after we get rid of the worst type of extremism and fundamentalism,†he told a news conference. “The entire nation will fight this evil.†He said one attacker had been arrested. Police in Model Town confirmed one gunmen had been arrested and another killed.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but suspicion quickly fell on the Pakistani Taliban. “It’s too early to say who is behind these attacks,†said a Lahore-based security official. “But my guess is that like most other attacks, there would be some link to the Taliban or their associated militants.†Punjab’s Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said the arrested attacker was a teenage Pashtun. This, he said, indicated a link to the tribal area of Waziristan and strongly hinted at a Taliban link.
“The prayer leader was giving a sermon when we heard firing and blasts. Everybody stood up and then two gunmen barged into the place of worship and sprayed bullets,†Fateh Sharif, a 19-year-old student, told Reuters from Model Town. “They had long beards. They were carrying rucksacks.†Bhutta said a suicide vest laden with explosives was recovered from the Model Town worship place, where some attackers escaped. One fired at a television van before the area was made safe. “He was young, clean-shaven. He sprayed bullets at our van while fleeing the scene,†Rabia Mehmood, a reporter told Reuters.
ATTACKS LAUNCHED AFTER PRAYERS
Witnesses said the assaults were launched shortly after prayers. “I saw some gunmen run towards the Ahmadis’ place of worship and then I heard blasts and gunfire,†Mohammad Nawaz, a resident, told Reuters. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said it had warned of threats against the Ahmadi community centre in Lahore for more than a year and demanded “foolproof security and protection†from the government. It expressed concern over “the increasing sectarian dimension†of militancy in Pakistan, which it called “a big security threat to the entire societyâ€.
Friday’s shootings were the worst attacks in Pakistan since March 12 suicide attacks seconds apart killed 57 people in Lahore while targeting the Pakistani military. Nine attacks have now killed more than 220 people in Lahore over the past year, a historical city, playground for the elite and home to many top brass in Pakistan military and intelligence establishment.
Another sad day for Pakistan. Another day when hatred overwhelms tolerance. Another day when we will cry. But a day when we should really be thinking. And thinking hard – and not just about those who will commit such evil, but about ourselves and about our having tolerated a society which would tolerate such hatred.
This poem by Ahmad Faraz, which we have used a few times before, was written for a different context. But it was written for the same context. Do please listen. Do please think:
Aashna hath he aksar mairi janab lapkay
Mairay seenay meiN sada appna he khanjar utra
@ adnan jahil troll
so we all will die and get resurrected, where does quran talk about jesus second coming? this 19:33 can very well be interpreted as jesus being resurrected on qiyamat.
i dont follow ghamidi, i believe in second coming of jesus with imam mehdi but quran does not talk about it.
@ adnan jahil
yes i have nothing to say about you cause the jesus debate was just to show that you quote quran from zakir naik’s book.
also it does not matter what label you have barlvi, wahabi, salafi. so i dont care about knowing it. all that matter is you are internet terrorist and apologizer of taliban.
by the way i dont support PPP, neither it was my website. is it too hard to believe that people from diverse backgrounds might smell your stink. do u fail to notice that your idiotic ideologies disgust a wide range of moderate balanced people. but keeping telling yourself that all these are just one person.
why dont you use your free IPP tracking lesson to go check who originally posted the site that u claim to be by some ppp.
Trust me you are unpopular in a diverse circle. I hope you enjoy that ;) and have fun. What a moron
Hmmmm interesting…Deva I would suggest you ignore people like AS…there is no talking to them…remember we were told to ignore the JAHILS….he is one of those
A person who cannot understand the simple principal of the matter that killing is wrong…esp when they expect every one to respect their faith and their man made blasphemy laws and then they go kill people who they think are wajib-ul katal solely bc they believe in something different than them…..its actually pathetic for them to even quote religion…we know that one of the things about people like this was told long time ago “they will twist quran to their advantage” so these are the people we were warned about that they will bring Islam down on its knees and they have done it with so much vigor and zeal.
If you cannot condemn killing without blatantly and shamelessly still spewing hate trying to justify your constitutional ban on a sect then you are as bad as people actually firing shots at unarmed unaware humans. I do not care what they believe but as the “ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF PAKISTAN” the one you so proudly present to the world not protecting a minority sect is not justified under any logic.
Why are you even talking about they are Muslim or not, why? Bc it makes it better??? or justifies killing just bc they are non Muslims…???? This goes right in tune with last years burning of a Christian village bc they supposedly insulted Quran….or are you so ignorant that you forgot that TTP yesterday took responsibility for this attack and have threatened shias in the same press release…I didnt see them threatening Wahabi’s in that release….so I have reasonable cause to believe that only Wahabi’s and people sympathetic to that idealogy are safe in this country…of course in such targeted attacks some people of protected sect will die as well but for your bigger cause that is just collateral damage….I am sure you are basking in the glory of your evil and twisted agenda…..but I hope people wake up soon enough to end your wet dream of global wahabism (evil empire) to a premature halt
Now you can continue with your apologetic and unhuman agenda and please knock yourself out and type some more of your useless point of view here
I hope Deva ignores you from now on….and not waste anymore time on you….and happy IP address hunting seems like thats what you do all day long in addition to your other job as a Saudi/Wahabi agent
@adnan siddiqi
“OOPS Deva! did you read 19:33. Now I don’t need to tell the meaning of “resurrected”, do I?”
I think you do need to tell everyone here what YOUR meaning of “resurrected” is. According to Webster Dictionary, to resurrect means to “bring back from the dead or the grave; to bring back to life”
If Jesus is alive, as you say, can you please clarify what it means to be “brought back form the dead” in his case?
Note that the verses you quoted do not say he is alive, only that he lived, died, and will be resurrected. These verses not only do not support your thesis, but contradict it by clearly stating that the man lived, died and will be resurrected, as opposed to lived and keeps living.
Also note that if your belief is that Jesus lived, died and has already been resurrected (therefore is now living), then you still need to provide supporting verse for that.
Amazing. I am not willing to get into circular arguments however I would just help you to come out of delusion and read what you said earlier.You said:
that it is written in quran that jesus is alive and will come back. I have read quran with translation several times, can u please give me the verse where it says that.
and when I quoted the Quran then you said:
about Jesus that I never questioned and are irrelevant to the discussion. But you didnt answer my question? so where does it say that jesus is alive and will return.
Fine,English is not our first language but it should not be an excuse to reject your own last comment. But then you said yourself:
i am really confused.
So I forgive your mistake. Most of Ghamidi followers re like that. Most of your comment was based on commenting on ME rather the comment itself which proves you had nothing to say. You don’t even know a bit about me whether am a wahabi or a barelvi or even something else!. No wonder your knowledge about ME is as weak as knowledge about Quran or Zardari/PPP’s knowledge about Good governance itself.
p.s: A very old and cheap tactic to promote your site(lubp), dear author. have fun ;)
@ adnan sleepy
i am really confused now. you gave me bunch of verses which are saying things about Jesus that I never questioned and are irrelevant to the discussion. But you didnt answer my question? so where does it say that jesus is alive and will return.
lol thats exactly the strategy of people like you ” just ramble on and write so much irrelevant stuff that people get confused. For the record you did nt answer my question. So do you accept now who the ignorant is?
Are you offended that people outside your salafi mudrassa have the right to read Quran and take Allah’s name without your certification. We understand that you want this right to be taken away and declare everyone who does not follow osama bin lanat’s cult to be a kafir.
I think its not ahmedis that pretend to be muslim, its you and your satan who have entered muslim’s in the skin of werewolves holding once again Quran on tips of sword to oppress. History is repeating itself.
were you trained in some wahabee mudrassa? how much money do you get from osama bin lanaat?
it is ironic that right now i am reading “three cups of tea” and seeing the reality of extremist wahabeesim in it. Do you have four wives and breeding like rabbits to increase aliens like you on earth?
I think the best thing is to ignore people like you here and dont respond to your comments anymore. This is the only way to convince people of your likes that no one cares about what you spit out from your puss cells.