All Pakistan Ulema Council
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The All Pakistan Ulema Council is an organization in Pakistan founded with the intention of reducing sectarian and interfaith violence among Muslims. Its members include Islamic clerics and legal scholars from a range of Islamic traditions. It is currently led by Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi.[1]
Protecting religious minorities and dissenters
In August 2012, the Council joined the Pakistan Interfaith League, which includes Christians, Sikhs and other religions, to denounce the misuse of Pakistan's blasphemy law. The unprecedented move came after a young Christian girl with Down's syndrome was charged with desecrating the Qur'an and held in prison.[1]
The council also issued fatwas prohibiting honor killings[2], takfeer (the act of declaring someone a non-Muslim)[3], and joining ISIS.[4] The first of these three prohibitions is significant, given polling that indicates substantial support for honor violence in Pakistani society.[5]
Views on suicide attacks
In March 2013, Ashrafi appeared to suggest that suicide attacks were permitted in Afghanistan so long as US forces remained in the country: "Palestine is occupied by Israel, Kashmir by India, and Afghanistan by the US. So if the Muslims don't have the atomic bomb, they should sacrifice their lives for God."[6] This sentiment reflects other statements from the Taliban that have likened suicide bombers to "the atomic weapons of Muslims."[7] Ashrafi later said that he was quoted out of context and had “never supported suicide attacks that cause civilian casualties in Afghanistan,” explaining that the Taliban’s supreme leader Mullah Omar had also banned such bombings.[8]
See Also
External Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Saeed Shah - Pakistani Muslim leaders support Christian girl accused of blasphemy - The Guardian, August 27, 2012
- ↑ Baba Umar (1 June 2014). "Pakistan clerics issue stoning death decree". Aljazeera News Organisation website. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
- ↑ No Islamic sect to be declared 'kaafir': Ulema Council Dunya TV News website, Published 5 June 2014, Retrieved 15 October 2019
- ↑ "Pakistan ulema council condemns IS militants". Dawn (newspaper). 17 October 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
- ↑ https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/05/30/four-in-ten-pakistanis-say-honor-killing-of-women-can-be-at-least-sometimes-justified/
- ↑ Abdul Haq Omari - Pakistan Ulema Permits Suicide Attacks - TOLOnews, March 2, 2013
- ↑ Lisa Lundquist - Pakistani clerics endorse suicide bombings, reject proposed peace conference - The Long War Journal, March 2, 2013
- ↑ Ashrafi takes U-turn on Afghan suicide attacks - Afghanistan Times, March 3, 2013