Latest news with #HamidulHaq
Express Tribune
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Attacking ulema is not jihad, says Fazl
Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the emir of his eponymous Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), has said taking up arms against religious scholars is not jihad but narrow mindedness and terrorism. "The people who killed my teacher and a religious scholar are not mujahids but murderers. It is not possible to call my teacher a martyr and his murderer a mujahid," Fazl said on Sunday during his visit to Darul Uloom Haqqania to offer his condolences to the family of Maulana Hamidul Haq. Maulana Hamidul Haq, the chief of the JUI-S, was assassinated last week in a suicide attack on the eve of Ramazan at his seminary at Akora Khattak. Hamid was the son of the late Maulana Samiul Haq, who was considered a founding figure for both the Afghan and Pakistani branches of the Taliban. Many Afghan Taliban had studied at Haq's seminary. Fazl said some people, under the banner of jihad, are charting a path to paradise. "Yet raising a gun against a religious scholar is narrow-mindedness not jihad." He said some extremists were targeting even mosques and in Balochistan a religious scholar was recently killed during prayer. "How can a gun be used against a Muslim and a religious scholar? In Islam, the killing of one person is tantamount to the killing of all humanity. Any use of a gun against Islam is not jihadit is terrorism," he added. Referring to the attack, Fazl likened extremist ideologies to storm winds that were bound to pass. "These madaris, mosques and ulema will prevail and the enemy will face embarrassment," he added. He said the attack on Maulana Hamidul Haq was an attack on his home, his madrasa and his center of learning. Fazl said just when the grief over Maulana Samiul Haq's martyrdom was still fresh, this heinous incident had shattered his heart. "I was on an Umrah when I received this tragic news. The shock I experienced cannot be put into words. Maulana Hamidul Haq was an innocent religious scholar; his only crime was his association with Darul Uloom Haqqania. The very walls of the Darul Uloom are in mourning." Fazl revealed that he had received information that an operation was about to be launched at Darul Uloom Haqqania. "When I met with state officials, I asked about this operation, and I told them that if such an intention is pursued it will cost dearly. I told them that the JUI-F does not engage in weapon-based politics but if any move is made against Darul Uloom Haqqania, a response will follow." He said the creed and methodology of the great ones have been entrusted to him, and he would uphold them. Fazl said he felt like cursing the people who were attacking the ulema.
Express Tribune
05-03-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Iftar-time attack on Bannu Cantt foiled
At least six terrorists were killed as security forces staved off a massive suicide attack on a garrison in the volatile southern district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Tuesday evening, security sources said amid reports of multiple civilian casualties in the brazen assault. The attack on Bannu Cantonment, which involved over a dozen terrorists, comes days after a suicide bomber killed six people, including Maulana Hamidul Haq, the chief of Jamait Ulema-e-Islam (Samiul Haq Group), at Darul Uloom Haqqania in Akora Khattak. Security sources said that heavily armed khawarij made an abortive attempt to storm their way into Bannu Cantt. However, they panicked outside the garrison due to the timely action of security forces, the sources added. "In a state of panic, the khawarij crashed two explosive-laden vehicles into the walls of Bannu Cantt." The term khawarij is used by the security forces for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an outlawed umbrella of terrorist groups responsible for much of violence in the country. The TTP was routed from the erstwhile tribal areas as a result of a successful military operation, codenamed Zarb-e-Azb, in 2014. The group has since found sanctuaries in Afghanistan. The blasts caused by explosive-laden vehicles at Kohati Gate tore down the roof of a mosque and damaged several houses in the nearby Kot Barah area, causing multiple civilian casualties, according to officials. Several worshippers were trapped under the rubble of the mosque. "The death toll now stands at twelve, including five children and two women, while at least 16 others were injured," a senior police official told Reuters news agency on condition of anonymity. "The blasts created two four-foot craters, and due to their intensity, at least eight houses in the locality have been damaged," the police official added. According to Muhammad Nauman, a spokesperson for the Medical Teaching Institution Bannu, five bodies were received at two state-run hospitals in the district including three children and two women. He added that a state of emergency has been declared in the city's hospitals. Security sources said that six khawarij were neutralised by the security personnel at various entry points, and the remaining terrorists have been trapped. "The clearance operation will continue until all the khawarij are eliminated," they added. The targeting of innocent civilians and mosque at Iftar time during the holy month of Ramazan shows that khawarij have nothing to do with Islam, according to security sources. The brazen attack has been claimed by an affiliate of the banned Hafiz Gul Bahadur terrorist group, which enjoys sanctuaries across the border in Afghanistan. The group carried out a similar deadly attack on the same garrison last July, detonating an explosive-laden vehicle against the boundary wall. President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the terrorist attack and praised the security forces for "sending the attackers to hell," his office said in a statement. "Such an attack during Iftar in the holy month of Ramazan is a heinous act," he said, adding that the entire nation rejects such nefarious actions. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also commended the security forces for "sending the terrorists to hell" who attempted to attack the Bannu Cantt. "The cowardly terrorists who targeted innocent civilians during the holy month of Ramazan do not deserve any mercy," the prime minister was quoted as saying by his office in a statement. Terrorist attacks have spiked in Pakistan since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021. Last year was the deadliest in a decade, with a surge in attacks that killed more than 1,600 people, according to Islamabad-based analysis group the Center for Research and Security Studies. Islamabad has repeatedly exhorted Kabul's Taliban rulers to root out the TTP and its affiliates who are sheltering on Afghan soil, but the Taliban remain reluctant. A United Nations report revealed last month that the Afghan Taliban's continued support for the TTP was fuelling the group's escalating attacks in Pakistan. The revelation was made in the 35th report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team submitted to the UN Security Council, which covers the period from July 1 to Dec 13, 2024. "The status and strength of TTP in Afghanistan had not changed," while the group intensified its assaults on Pakistan, conducting over 600 attacks during the reporting period, many launched from Afghan territory, the report states. It underscored that the Taliban continued to provide the TTP with logistical and operational space and financial support, bolstering the group's capacity to sustain its activities. The report revealed that the family of TTP chief receives around $43,000 per month from the Afghan Taliban. (With additional input from News Desk and Agencies)
Express Tribune
02-03-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
PM launches Rs20b Ramazan package
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif speaks at the inauguration ceremony of the Ramazan package in Islamabad. PHOTO: PPI Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday launched Rs20 billion Ramazan package for four million deserving families across the country, benefitting about 20 million people. Addressing the launching ceremony, the prime minister said that a total of four million deserving families comprising about two crore people would get relief from this package which would be distributed in the first ten days of the holy month. Each family through digital wallets would get Rs5,000, he said, expressing his satisfaction that the price hike had been reduced this year when compared with the previous figures during Ramazan. "This year, an amount of Rs20 billion has been allocated for the purpose. The relief amount last year was Rs7 billion," he added. The prime minister also lauded all the relevant authorities and institutions including ministries, State Bank of Pakistan, NADRA, BISP and tech companies who worked day and night to devise a digital mechanism. The federal government's initiative would benefit all parts of the country through a well-devised digital system, he added. He also expressed his gratitude to the foreign partners for their partnership and support in this noble cause and appreciated their commitment and valuable contributions. The prime minister said that billions of rupees of the poor nation had been stuck up in litigation for years and expressed the resolve of the government to get expeditious decisions over Rs500 billion cases pending for adjudication in various courts. He said corruption was being dealt with iron hands. During their previous interim government's tenure, the banks had made windfall profits over fluctuation of dollar rates and got stay orders from the court when the government introduced a legislation in this regard. Referring to a decision of the recent Sindh High Court, he said Rs23 billion were recovered from the disposal of a stay case. The prime minister termed corruption in the Utility Stores Corporation 'worst one' and said that it was being privatised, ending public agonies with a very proactive digital system like the one just launched. He also reiterated to close down other government's entities running into losses. The prime minister expressed his deep grief over a terrorist attack on Maulana Hamidul Haq at Madrassa Haqqania in which Maulana Haq had embraced martyrdom. He said that Madrassa Haqqania was a renowned center of Islamic studies, and yesterday's terrorist incident was heart-wrenching and highly condemnable. The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government would immediately bring the perpetrators to book, he said, adding in the year 2018, terrorism was eliminated from the country, and in that fight about 80,000 Pakistanis had laid down their lives, including security forces officers and jawans and all segments of society. Unfortunately, he said the specter raised its head in the recent times and everyone knew the reasons. With the unmatched sacrifices of the security forces and nation's support, they would eliminate terrorism forever and would not rest till its complete eradication, he added. Minister for Industries and Production Rana Tanveer Hussain, in his remarks, said the programme was sanctioned in twenty days in which all the relevant authorities played a significant part, enabling them to launch the initiative in the holy month. He said foolproof mechanism would ensure swift transfer of amount to 4 million deserving families all over the country. Moreover, a total of 600 stalls were being set up at the tehsil level to provide sugar at subsidized price of Rs130 kg.
Arab News
01-03-2025
- Arab News
Thousands attend funeral for senior Taliban-linked cleric slain in Pakistan's northwest
AKORA KHATTAK: Thousands of mourners attended a funeral Saturday for a Taliban-linked cleric slain in Pakistan's northwest. Hamidul Haq, the head of Jamia Haqqania seminary, was one of seven people killed in a suicide bombing a day earlier at a mosque inside a seminary compound. Police said Haq was the target of the attack. He was the son of the late Maulana Samiul Haq, who is considered a founding figure for the Afghan Taliban movement. Many Afghan Taliban have studied at Jamia Haqqania in the past few decades. Nobody has claimed responsibility for Friday's attack. Authorities issued a photo of the alleged suicide bomber and urged the public to identify him, offering a reward of 500,000 rupees, or $1,787, for information on his name, parentage and place of residence. Mourners packed into the main hall of the seminary for Haq's funeral, with more praying on the street. The prayers passed without incident due to a heavy police deployment and seminary students guarding the venue. The bombing at Jamia Haqqania seminary was one of four attacks in Pakistan on Friday, two of them at mosques, which were unusual both in their number and timing, just before the holy month of Ramadan.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thousands attend funeral for senior Taliban-linked cleric slain in Pakistan's northwest
AKORA KHATTAK, Pakistan (AP) — Thousands of mourners attended a funeral Saturday for a Taliban-linked cleric slain in Pakistan's northwest. Hamidul Haq, the head of Jamia Haqqania seminary, was one of seven people killed in a suicide bombing a day earlier at a mosque inside a seminary compound. Police said Haq was the target of the attack. He was the son of the late Maulana Samiul Haq, who is considered a founding figure for the Afghan and Pakistani branches of the Taliban. Many Afghan Taliban have studied at Jamia Haqqania in the past few decades. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Nobody has claimed responsibility for Friday's attack. Authorities issued a photo of the alleged suicide bomber and urged the public to identify him, offering a reward of 500,000 rupees, or $1,787, for information on his name, parentage and place of residence. Mourners packed into the main hall of the seminary for Haq's funeral, with more praying on the street. The prayers passed without incident due to a heavy police deployment and seminary students guarding the venue. The bombing at Jamia Haqqania seminary was one of four attacks in Pakistan on Friday, two of them at mosques, which were unusual both in their number and timing, just before the holy month of Ramadan.
