Daily Times

The Pakistan Ulema Council (PUC), expressing its vehement condemnation of the heinous terrorist attacks in Mastung and Hangu on Saturday, said that those who attacked innocent people were enemies of humanity, Islam and Pakistan as their mission is to spread unrest in the country.

In a joint statement, PUC Chairman Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi, Allama Abdul Haq Mujahid, Maulana Rafiq Jami, Maulana Nauman Hashir, Maulana Muhammad Shafi Qasmi, Allama Tahir Al Hassan, Pir Asadullah Farooq, Maulana Aslam Siddiqui, Qari Ismatullah Muawiya, Maulana Zubair Abid, Maulana Muhammad Aslam Siddiqui, Qari Abdul Hakeem Athar, Maulana Muhammad Aslam Qadri, Maulana Mubashir Rahimi, Maulana Abdul Ghaffar Farooqui, Maulana Ibrahim Hanafi, Mufti Syed Naseem Islam, Mufti Falak Sher, Mufti Rehmat Deen, Qari Kafayatullah, Maulana Nasir Haqqani, and Qari Faisal Ameen said those who terrorized innocent and defenseless civilians on the holy occasion of 12th Rabiul Awwal had no affiliation with any religion particularly Islam and they were enemies of humanity.

They said Pakistan’s perpetual adversary, had been involved in fomenting unrest in the region as it used international terrorist organizations to fuel instability, not only in Pakistan but also in countries like Canada, as evidenced by recent murder of Sikh leader. They further said India wanted to divert the world’s attention from its internal and external problems through such terrorist incidents.

The religious scholars and leaders said they stood united along with the general public against the terrorism and extremism and pledged their full support to the national armed forces and security agencies in their unwavering efforts to eradicate terrorism and maintain peace.

They recalled Pakistan’s successful efforts in exposing and dismantling international terrorist networks operating within its borders reiterating its commitment to counter these sinister designs and pledged to continue their struggle against the enemies of peace and stability.

In conclusion, they said Pakistan, its security institutions, political and religious leaders, and the resilient people were resolutely facing the challenges posed by terrorism and they remained determined not to let these conspiracies succeed in destabilizing their nation and region.

It is worth mentioning here that Organized by the PUC, a gathering of religious scholars and leaders of all schools of thought and representatives of different religions titled ‘Sirat Rahmatul-lil-Alameen (Peace Be Upon Him) Conference’ would be held at Al Hamra Hall, Shahrah-e-Quaid-e-Azam, Lahore on Sunday.

The conference, chaired by PUC Chairman Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi, would be addressed by Council of Islamic Ideology Chairman Dr. Qibla Ayaz, President Church of Pakistan Bishop Azad Marshall, Allama Syed Zia Ullah Shah Bukhari, Maulana Muhammad Khan Laghari, Maulana Rafiq Jami, Maulana Abdul Haq Mujahid and leaders of various religions.

According to details, an action plan against extremism, terrorism and communal violence would be announced in the conference.

In another statement, Ulema and Mashaykh of all schools of thought were of the view that on the sacred day of Eid Miladun Nabi, Khawariji terrorists had shown their anti-Islam agenda as they targeted the innocent Muslims, who were commemorating the birthday of the beloved Prophet (Peace Be upon Him).

The religious scholars and leaders said they chose a sacred day of happiness, peace and pride for this cruel act reflecting their un-Islamic mindset.

Shedding light on their nefarious designs, they hinted that Khawariji terrorists were trying to provoke sectarian issues by targeting peaceful and moderate school of thought – Barelvism. They said symbolic attack on 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal, was meant to instigate sectarian violence between radical and peaceful Muslims. The leaders said the terrorists wanted to add religious or sectarian dimension to violence in Balochistan to expand insecurity beyond sub-nationalist militancy. They said anti-state elements were trying to reduce Chinese trust and confidence in the security environment of Balochistan for sabotaging the ongoing mega projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and future business activities in the region.