• Friday, March 29, 2024

Results for "Prophet Mohammed"

Suicide blast in Pakistan kills 52

AT LEAST 52 people were killed and more than 50 injured on Friday (29) in a suicide attack on a religious gathering to mark the birthday of Prophet Mohammed in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province, health officials and police said. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast, which comes amid…

Dutch prosecutor wants 12-year term for former Pakistan cricketer

A FORMER Pakistani international cricketer went on trial last Tuesday (29) in the Netherlands for allegedly attempting to incite the murder of anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders, with prosecutors demanding a 12-year sentence if convicted. Dutch public prosecutors said Khalid Latif, 37, who remains in Pakistan, had offered €21,000 (£18,284) in…

Denmark set to ban Qu’ran burnings

Denmark announced on Friday (25), its intention to ban Qu’ran burnings in response to a series of incidents involving the desecration of Islam's sacred text within the Scandinavian country. These actions had provoked outrage in various Muslim countries. In the wake of this backlash, Denmark heightened its security measures earlier…

France to ban wearing abayas in schools

FRENCH authorities are to ban the wearing in school of abaya dresses worn by some Muslim women, the education minister said Sunday (27), arguing the garment violated France's strict secular laws in education. "It will no longer be possible to wear an abaya at school," education minister Gabriel Attal told…

87 Christian homes, 19 churches damaged in Pakistan street violence

Over 80 Christian homes and 19 churches in Pakistan were vandalised as a Muslim mob engaged in street violence this week, a senior police official confirmed on Friday (18). Amid allegations of blasphemy, an enraged group of Muslim men stormed through a neighbourhood in Punjab province's city of Jaranwala on…

Case against former Pakistan cricketer for issuing death threats to…

The Netherlands announced on Monday (17) that a well-known Pakistani figure is being prosecuted for allegedly inciting the murder of a Dutch lawmaker. Anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders claimed that the suspect is former international cricketer Khalid Latif. The prosecution service stated that in 2018, a 37-year-old individual offered €21,000 or…

Wikipedia back online in Pakistan after ‘blasphemy’ ban

Wikipedia was back online in Pakistan on Tuesday, after the country's prime minister ordered authorities to lift a block imposed on the online encyclopedia over "blasphemous content." Blasphemy is a sensitive issue in Muslim-majority Pakistan, and Facebook and YouTube have previously been banned for publishing content deemed sacrilegious. Minister of…

Iran denies link with Rushdie’s attacker, blames writer

Iran on Monday denied any link with the attacker of British author Salman Rushdie but blamed the writer himself for "insulting" Islam in the novel "The Satanic Verses". "We categorically deny" any link with the attack and "no one has the right to accuse the Islamic Republic of Iran," said…

Rushdie family ‘relieved’ he is off ventilator: son

The family of Salman Rushdie are "extremely relieved" he has been taken off a ventilator following his stabbing, and the British author has retained his "defiant sense of humour", his son said on Sunday. "We are extremely relieved that yesterday he was taken off the ventilator and additional oxygen and…

Salman Rushdie stabbed in neck at event in western New…

British author Salman Rushdie, whose writings made him the target of Iranian death threats that forced him into hiding, was attacked on stage Friday (12) in western New York state. Video footage posted on social media showed people rushing to his aid after he was attacked at the event in…

120 Imams rallies in support of Qari Asim, condemn his…

Several Muslim scholars and an umbrella organisation of the community have expressed reservations over the removal of a cleric as the UK government’s official adviser. The government had earlier this month dismissed Imam Qari Asim from his role as its Islamophobia Advisor, accusing him of fomenting protests against 'The Lady…

UK govt cuts ties with imam over protests against film…

THE UK government dismissed a Muslim cleric from his role as an official adviser, accusing him of fomenting protests against a new film about the daughter of the Prophet Mohammed. Alleging The Lady of Heaven is blasphemous, Muslim groups protested outside UK movie houses this week, forcing the world's second-largest…

Producer of ‘Blasphemous’ film ‘The Lady of Heaven’ blasts protesters

THE producer of the movie The Lady Of Heaven has blasted Muslim protesters and accused them of 'poisonous rhetoric, bullying tactics and propaganda', according to a report. Executive producer Malik Shilbak asked his critics to 'take their heads out of the clouds' in a heated discussion with Roshan Salih, editor…

Don’t know how they explain it to their conscience: Naseeruddin…

Veteran Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah has spoken about the film industry’s silence on the BJP leader’s remarks about Prophet Mohammed. With particular emphasis on the three Khans of Bollywood – Salman, Shah Rukh, and Aamir, Shah said in an interview that the biggest stars in the country have too much…

Cineworld drops ‘blasphemous’ film about Prophet Mohammed’s daughter

UK cinema chain Cineworld has pulled all screenings of a film about the daughter of the Prophet Mohammed after Muslim groups protested outside theatres, calling the movie "blasphemous". Cineworld, the world's second-largest cinema chain, said it will cancel all showings of "The Lady of Heaven" due to safety concerns. "Due…

Here’s why #BoycottQatarAirways trended on Twitter over India’s Prophet controversy

AMID the growing backlash that India faced from the Gulf countries over the controversial remarks that a leader of its ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) allegedly made on Prophet Muhammad, #BoycottQatarAirways started trending on Twitter on Monday (6) with many people targeting the Gulf country's carrier. There were also people…

Pakistan summons Indian charge d’affaires over controversial remarks by BJP…

Pakistan said on Monday that it has summoned the Indian charge d'affaires to convey its categorical rejection and condemnation of the controversial remarks by two BJP leaders against Prophet Mohammed.The Indian diplomat was told that these remarks are totally unacceptable and have not only deeply hurt the sentiments of the…

Prophet Muhammad remarks row: Islamic nations at odds with India

India on Monday hit out at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for its criticism of the country in the wake of the alleged derogatory remarks made against Prophet Mohammed by two BJP functionaries.External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India categorically rejects the OIC Secretariat's "unwarranted and narrow-minded comments"…

Mob sets police station on fire in Pakistan over Koran…

THOUSANDS of people mobbed a Pakistan police station, setting fire to it and nearby check-posts after demanding that officers hand over a man accused of burning the Koran, police said Monday (29). The mob of up to 5,000 people surrounded the police station in Charsadda town in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa…

Pakistan frees leader of radical party behind anti-France protests

PAKISTAN on Thursday (18) freed the leader of a radical religious party that staged massive anti-France protests, after lifting a ban on the group earlier this month to end the latest round of deadly unrest. Hundreds of supporters could be seen cheering and throwing flower petals as Saad Rizvi, head…

Pakistan lifts ban on radical anti-France party

PAKISTAN'S government has lifted a ban on a radical party that staged massive anti-France protests, after striking a deal with the group which ended the latest rounds of deadly protests. In a notification published on Sunday (7), the government said the move was in the "national interest", coming after seven…

Three policemen shot dead at Islamist rally in Pakistan

AT LEAST three policemen were shot dead and 70 more wounded when supporters of a banned Islamist party opened fire at a rally in Pakistan on Wednesday (27), the country's interior minister said. The Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) is protesting over the detention of its leader Saad Rizvi, arrested in April…

Sharia law around the world

With the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan there are fears they will reimpose their harsh interpretation of sharia law. Most Muslim nations incorporate elements of sharia in their legal systems, particularly in family law. But very few carry out its punishments known as hudud, which even Muslim scholars disagree on. -…

Bangladesh arrests social media star for dance video at mosque

  BANGLADESH police arrested a social media star for shooting a dance video with a woman at a mosque, officials said Monday (9). The clip triggered online anger in the Muslim-majority nation, police said, adding that a 20-year-old Yasin was arrested at his home in Daudkandi, some 60 kilometres (40…

Pakistani policeman accused of killing man acquitted of blasphemy

A PAKISTANI policeman killed a man with a cleaver over blasphemy allegations years after the victim was acquitted of the charge by a court, police said on Saturday (3). Waqas Ahmed faced trial in 2016 over a Facebook post, but was acquitted. The policeman, Abdul Qadir, resented the verdict and…

Blasphemy case: Death sentence for Pakistan’s Christian couple overturned

A PAKISTANI court on Thursday (3) ordered the release of a Christian couple sentenced to death for blasphemy, lawyers said, weeks after the European Parliament criticised the country over the case. Shafqat Emmanuel and Shagufta Kausar were jailed in 2014 after being convicted of sending a text message insulting Prophet…

Pakistan parliament again defers debate on French envoy’s expulsion

PAKISTAN's parliament on Friday (23) again deferred debating the fate of the French ambassador, with the government seemingly putting a lid on bloody anti-France protests that rocked the country for a week. A resolution tabled Wednesday (21) called for the national assembly to debate whether to expel the French envoy,…

Pakistan Taliban claim deadly blast at luxury hotel

The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility on Thursday for a deadly suicide blast at a luxury hotel hosting the Chinese ambassador in the southwest of the country, as officials raised the death toll to five. Beijing said it strongly condemned the attack, although the Taliban said Pakistan security officials were the…

Imran Khan urges Western governments to criminalise insulting the Prophet…

PAKISTAN prime minister Imran Khan has urged Muslim-majority countries to force western governments to criminalise insulting the Prophet Mohammed and called for trade boycott. In a televised address on Monday (19), Khan said that countries need to explain why this hurts them when in the name of freedom of speech…

Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan battles fallout in France blasphemy…

Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan had hoped a fight over cartoons of the prophet Mohammed would result in an easy win -- placating the ultra-conservative quarters at home while being hailed as a defender of Islam abroad. The gamble seems to have backfired spectacularly. For the past week, riots have…

French embassy advises citizens to leave Pakistan

French nationals and companies in Pakistan were advised by their embassy on Thursday to temporarily leave after violent anti-France protests paralysed large parts of the country. Anti-French sentiment has been simmering for months in Pakistan since the government of President Emmanuel Macron expressed support for a satirical magazine's right to…

Pakistan restores social media apps after temporary block on security…

PAKISTAN restored Facebook, Twitter and several other social media apps on Friday (16) after blocking them for about five hours on security grounds amid a crackdown against a violent Islamist group, officials said. "In order to maintain public order and safety, access to certain social media applications has been restricted…

Anti-France protests in Pakistan disrupt critical oxygen supply for Covid-19…

THOUSANDS of supporters of a Pakistan Islamist party who blocked major roads to protest the arrest of their leader also disrupted critical oxygen supplies for Covid-19 patients, health officials said Tuesday (13). Major intersections remained closed in Lahore, Pakistan's second-biggest city, after the arrest on Monday (12) of Saad Rizvi,…

Pakistan police tear gas thousands of anti-France protesters

Pakistan police used tear gas and water cannon on Monday on thousands of supporters of an Islamist anti-blasphemy party after the arrest of their leader, who has called for the expulsion of the French ambassador. Anti-French sentiment has been simmering for months in Pakistan since the government of president Emmanuel…

Paris summons Pakistan’s envoy over Alvi remarks on French Muslims

THE French foreign ministry has summoned Pakistan's envoy to protest claims by president Arif Alvi that a French bill cracking down on radical Islam stigmatises Muslims. Addressing a conference on religion last Saturday (20), Alvi said: "When you see that laws are being changed in favour of a majority to…

France detains four over attack on Charlie Hebdo ex-offices

French authorities this week arrested four people of Pakistan origin suspected of links to the meat cleaver attack in late September by a young Pakistani outside the former offices of the Charlie Hebdo weekly that wounded two people, a judicial source said on Friday. The four were detained on Monday…

Massive crowds attend funeral for Pakistani firebrand cleric

Massive crowds of maskless mourners gathered in Lahore on Saturday for the funeral of hardline Pakistani cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi, who for years terrorised the country's religious minorities, incited riots and advocated the destruction of European nations in the name of fighting blasphemy. Vast throngs of men were seen packing…

Bangladesh cricket star Shakib gets bodyguard after Islamist threats

Bangladesh star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been given an armed bodyguard after he was threatened by Islamists for attending a Hindu ceremony in neighbouring India, the country's cricket board said on Wednesday. The cricketer is the latest target of Islamists in Bangladesh, who have also held large anti-France rallies…

Pakistani Islamists end anti-France protest after government talks

A Pakistani Islamist party on Tuesday (17) called off an anti-France demonstration on its third day, after securing the release of protesters arrested following clashes with police. Ultra-conservative Pakistan has seen scattered protests since French president Emmanuel Macron defended the right to criticise Islam as part of freedom of speech,…

Bangladesh cricket star Shakib threatened over Hindu ceremony

Star Bangladesh cricketer Shakib Al Hasan has been forced to make a public apology after receiving Islamist threats for attending a Hindu ceremony in neighbouring India. The leading all-rounder is the latest target of increasingly vocal Islamists who have also staged huge anti-France rallies in recent weeks over the publication…

Taslima Nasreen: Relentless rebel revelling in polemics

Banished from her homeland with a bounty on her head, author Taslima Nasreen has been forced to live in exile for more than a quarter of a century -- but she refuses to bow to the religious fundamentalists that want her dead. The fiery 58-year-old Bangladeshi, whose bestsellers include A…

UK increases terrorism threat level to ‘severe’

Britain on Tuesday (3) upgraded the country's terrorism threat level from "substantial" to "severe", after a deadly shooting rampage in Vienna and several attacks across France. "Severe" -- the second-highest of five levels -- means an attack is "highly likely", said the domestic intelligence service MI5, which announced the change…

France’s Macron seeks to calm tensions with Muslims

President Emmanuel Macron sought to calm flaring tensions with Muslims around the world on Saturday (31), telling an Arab TV channel he understood that caricatures of the prophet Mohammed could be shocking while lashing out at "lies" that the French state was behind them. France is on edge after the…

Pakistan’s Khan calls for collective Muslim action against Islamophobia

Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday (28) wrote to the leaders of Muslim countries calling on them to act together against Islamophobia, as anger grows over France’s defence of the right to mock religion. Muslims across the world have reacted furiously to French president Emmanuel Macron's defence of free…

Huge anti-France rally in Bangladesh as Macron backlash widens

Tens of thousands of protesters marched through the Bangladesh capital on Tuesday in the biggest anti-France rally since president Emmanuel Macron defended cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed. Muslims across the world have reacted furiously to Macron's robust defence of the right to mock religion following the murder of a French…

Pakistan summons French envoy over Macron’s Islamist remarks

Pakistan summoned France's ambassador Monday (26) to complain about a "systematic Islamophobic campaign" in the European nation after French president Emmanuel Macron criticised Islamists and defended the publication of religious cartoons. The move came as small, scattered protests were held in cities across Pakistan and a day after prime minister…

Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan accuses Macron of ‘attacking Islam’

Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan accused French president Emmanuel Macron on Sunday (25) of "attacking Islam", after the European leader criticised Islamists and defended the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed. Khan's comments follow statements Macron made last week after a French teacher was beheaded near Paris after he…

Paris meat cleaver attacker’s identity in doubt

There was confusion on Monday (28) over the identity of the man who injured two people in a meat cleaver attack in Paris last week, which was condemned by the French government as an act of "Islamist terrorism". Investigators said the assailant had identified himself as Hassan A., an 18-year-old…

Pakistan’s Imran Khan condemns ‘Islamophobic’ Charlie Hebdo cartoons

Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan on Friday (25) condemned the fresh publication of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed by a French satirical weekly, urging UN efforts against what he called rising Islamophobia. Addressing the UN General Assembly in a pre-recorded message, Khan said that rising global nationalism has "accentuated Islamophobia"…

Pakistan-born man held on terror charges after two wounded in…

A man armed with a meat cleaver wounded two in Paris on Friday (25) outside the former offices of satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo before being arrested by police, three weeks into the trial of suspected accomplices in the 2015 massacre of the newspaper's staff. France's PNAT specialist anti-terror prosecution office…

Hindu man jailed in Bangladesh for insulting Prophet Mohammed

A Hindu has been jailed for seven years in Muslim-majority Bangladesh for insulting the Prophet Mohammed on Facebook, a prosecutor said on Thursday (17). Although Bangladesh is officially secular, criticism of Islam is taboo in the conservative nation of 168 million people and violent protests have previously erupted over social…

Anti-Shiite protesters march for second day in Karachi

TENS of thousands of anti-Shiite protesters including demonstrators linked to Sunni extremists rallied in Pakistan's Karachi on Saturday(12), in the second day of protests that have sparked fears of sectarian violence. Vast crowds of men thronged downtown Karachi -- Pakistan's largest city and a major business and industrial hub --…

Al-Qaeda threatens Charlie Hebdo for republishing Mohammed cartoons: SITE

AL-QAEDA has threatened French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo with a repeat of a 2015 massacre of its staff, after it republished controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, the SITE observatory said on Friday(11). Al-Qaeda in its publication One Ummah had warned that Charlie Hebdo would be mistaken if it believed…

Anti-Shiite protest rattles Pakistan’s Karachi

Thousands of anti-Shiite protesters including demonstrators linked to Sunni extremists rallied in Pakistan's Karachi on Friday (11), sparking fears that rising tensions between the religious groups may unleash a new round of sectarian violence. The rally follows a raft of blasphemy accusations against major Shiite leaders in Pakistan after a…

‘Nothing to regret’ over Mohammed cartoons: Charlie Hebdo chief

The current director of France's Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly, the target of a massacre by Islamist gunmen in January 2015, on Wednesday (9) said the magazine had "nothing to regret" for publishing cartoons of the prophet Mohammed that angered Muslims around the world. Fourteen suspected accomplices are standing trial in…

France’s Charlie Hebdo sells out with Mohammed cartoons reprint

FRENCH satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, the target of a jihadist attack in 2015, has said that its latest edition reprinting controversial caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed had sold out in just one day. Wednesday's (2) issue featured a dozen cartoons mocking the prophet of Islam, including images that sparked huge…

Pakistan backlash grows over Charlie Hebdo cartoons

Anti-France demonstrators rallied on Thursday in Pakistan and the foreign minister lodged a diplomatic complaint as the backlash grew against a French magazine republishing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. Satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, the target of a massacre by Islamist gunmen in 2015, reprinted the controversial caricatures this week to…

Pakistan slams French paper for reprinting Mohammed cartoons

Pakistan's foreign office condemned on Tuesday the decision by French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo to reprint cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. Thousands of people marched in Pakistani cities in 2015 after the weekly magazine first ran the images, deemed by many in the conservative Muslim country to be blasphemous. "#Pakistan…

Lawyer provided gun in slaying of US man in Pakistan…

A Pakistani lawyer has been arrested for allegedly giving a pistol to a teenager accused of gunning down a US citizen as he appeared in court on blasphemy charges, officials said on Wednesday (19). Last month's killing of Tahir Ahmad Nasim in the northern city of Peshawar provoked outrage in…

Two dead in Bangalore violence over anti-Islam Facebook post

Two people died after a "derogatory" Facebook post about the Prophet Mohammed sparked riots in India's IT hub Bangalore that saw clashes between police and thousands of protesters, authorities said on Wednesday. At least 60 officers were injured the previous evening as a furious crowd attacked a police station, set…

Three die in India’s Bengaluru as Facebook post sparks clashes…

AT LEAST three people died in clashes with police in the Indian city of Bengaluru overnight after a Facebook post offensive to Muslims sparked protests in which a police station was attacked, and a politician's house and vehicles were torched. Unable to quell protesters using batons and tear gas, besieged…

Blasphemy suspect gunned down in Pakistan court

A Pakistani man facing charges of blasphemy was shot dead in court on Wednesday as he awaited the start of his hearing, police said. Tahir Ahmad Nasim, 47, was a member of a persecuted sect whose faith has been deemed heretical in Pakistan because they challenge the succession of the…

India asks TikTok, Facebook to remove users spreading coronavirus misinformation

India has told Facebook and Chinese video app TikTok to remove users found to be spreading misinformation about the coronavirus following concern about videos intended to mislead Muslims, according to a government source and a letter seen by Reuters. The move follows a report by Delhi-based digital analytics firm Voyager…

Blasphemy still a potent tool for Pakistan’s hushed hardliners

Inside a small Lahore courtroom, the packed crowd attending the hearing of a blasphemy case against a Christian pastor is most notable for the absence of hardline clerics shouting insults and demanding the death penalty. For years, they would attend such hearings in force, seeking to pressure magistrates to convict…

Watchdog slams new social media measures in Pakistan

A leading media rights watchdog has slammed new regulatory measures targeting social media platforms in Pakistan where the media have been subjected to growing censorship and pressure following the election of prime minister Imran Khan in 2018. According to a draft of the law, the new measures announced earlier this…

Geert Wilders relaunches Mohammed cartoon competition

Far-right Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders said he was reviving a Prophet Mohammed cartoon competition Saturday, more than a year after cancelling a similar contest that sparked demonstrations and death threats. The MP and leader of the Freedom Party (PVV) invited his Twitter followers to send in satirical drawings of Mohammed.…

Pakistani jailed for Dutch anti-Islam MP murder plot

A Dutch court sentenced a Pakistani man to 10 years behind bars on Monday (18) for planning to assassinate anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders after the MP announced a Prophet Mohammed cartoon competition. The man, identified as Junaid I. by local media, was arrested in August 2018 at a train station…

Pakistani man jailed for blasphemous Facebook post

A Pakistani court Friday sentenced a man to five years jail and hard labour for a blasphemous Facebook post, in what is believed to be one of the first such cases under controversial cybercrime laws. Sajid Ali was charged with posting blasphemous and derogatory content against revered Islamic figures on…

Imran Khan says Asia Bibi will leave Pakistan ‘in weeks’

PAKISTAN prime minister Imran Khan has promised that Christian mother Asia Bibi will leave the country in a few week's time. Bibi was freed from death row on blasphemy charges five months back, and despite Canada giving her asylum she is yet to leave Pakistan. "There is a little bit…

Facts about Sharia law around the world

Brunei on Wednesday introduced harsh new sharia laws -- including death by stoning for adultery and gay sex -- despite a storm of global criticism from rights groups. Although most Muslim nations incorporate elements of sharia law in their legal systems, very few carry out the harsher punishments -- known…

Asia Bibi’s daughter begs Pakistan to allow mother to join…

THE DAUGHTER of a Pakistani Christian mother freed from a blasphemy death sentence has pleaded her mother be allowed to leave the country. Asia Bibi's youngest daughter, 18-year-old Eisham Aashiq, has been living with her sister Esha, 21, in a secret location in Canada since December after prime minister Justin…

Asia Bibi “very unwell” in Pakistan safe house

A PAKISTANI Christian mother freed from a blasphemy death sentence in the country, is said to be "very unwell." Asia Bibi's health is failing and she is being denied access to medical care, MailOnline reported. Although Bibi is free to leave the country, her freedom is now being blocked by…

Supreme Court rejects challenge to Asia Bibi acquittal

Pakistan's Supreme Court on Tuesday (29) rejected a challenge against its decision to acquit Asia Bibi of blasphemy, igniting calls for the Christian mother to finally be allowed to leave the country where she still faces threats to her life. The ruling by the country's highest court paves the way…

Asia Bibi’s case to be decided by Pakistan’s Supreme Court…

Pakistan's Supreme Court will decide on January 29 whether to allow an appeal against its acquittal of a Christian woman at the centre of a blasphemy row, a lawyer involved in the case said on Thursday. If the court refuses to allow the appeal, it will remove the last legal…

Two Christian brothers sentenced to death for blasphemy in Pakistan

Two Christian brothers from Lahore have been sentenced to death for blasphemy in Pakistan. Qaiser and Amoon Ayub were sentenced by a district judge after being convicted of insulting the Prophet Mohammed in contents posted on their website. “The prosecution has proved its case against both the accused beyond shadow…

Pakistani cleric who led protests against Asia Bibi charged with…

A cleric who led violent protests to protest the acquittal of Asia Bibi, the Christian woman involved in blasphemy charges, was on Saturday charged with terrorism and sedition offences. Last month, Khadim Hussain Rizvi and his party Tehreek-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) had led violent protests after the Supreme Court overturned the…

Justin Trudeau in talks to bring freed Asia Bibi to…

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau said Monday that his government was holding talks with Pakistan over potentially offering asylum to Asia Bibi, a Christian woman recently freed from prison after her blasphemy conviction was overturned. "We are in discussions with the Pakistani government," Trudeau said in an interview with AFP in Paris,…

Pakistan blasphemy Christian still in jail one week on

One week after the country's highest court ordered her release, a Pakistani Christian who has spent eight years on death row for blasphemy was still in prison on Wednesday (7), with no immediate prospect of freedom. Thousands of Islamists poured onto the streets in protest after supreme court judges overturned Asia…

Mosques seek Twitter ban on Dutch populist Geert Wilders

A body representing 144 Turkish mosques in the Netherlands has asked Twitter to block the account of anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders for inciting hatred. The Turkish Islamic Cultural Federation (TICF) sent the letter on Friday seeking "a permanent ban of the Twitter of Mr. Geert Wilders... due to continuous publications…

Asia Bibi’s husband pleads for asylum in UK

The husband of a Pakistani Christian woman at the centre of a divisive blasphemy case has pleaded for international help to leave the country, saying he feared for his family's safety. The request by Asia Bibi's husband Ashiq Masih came a day after he criticised a government deal with hardline…

Pakistani Christian woman in limbo despite acquittal by top court

The fate of a Pakistani Christian woman accused of blasphemy was in limbo Saturday after the government allowed Islamist hardliners to appeal against her acquittal and put her on a no fly list. Asia Bibi's lawyer who saved her from the gallows left the country early Saturday after threats to…

Asia Bibi: the Pakistani Christian acquitted of blasphemy

For the majority of Asia Bibi's life she lived in obscurity like many of Pakistan's downtrodden Christian minority, until a blasphemy allegation saw her sentenced to death in a case that divided the nation. She was thrust into the spotlight in deeply conservative Muslim Pakistan, where even unsubstantiated accusations of disrespecting Islam…

HARDLINERS THREATEN JUDGES AS PAKISTAN AWAITS BLASPHEMY RULING

Religious hardliners in Pakistan Wednesday threatened judges and announced protests as the country awaits a Supreme Court ruling on the fate of a Christian woman who faces becoming the first person to be executed for blasphemy. Asia Bibi, who has been on death row since 2010, is at the centre of the…

Christian mother of five in last appeal on blasphemy death…

Pakistan's Supreme Court said it had reached a judgement on Monday (8) after hearing the final appeal of a Christian mother on death row for blasphemy, but that it will announce its ruling later in the notorious case, which has gone all the way to the Vatican. Chief Justice Saqib…

Saudi Arabia embraces yoga in pivot towards ‘moderation’

In a sparse, wood-floored studio, Saudi women squat, lunge and do headstands. Even a year ago, teaching these yoga postures could have rendered them outlaws in the conservative Islamic kingdom. Widely perceived as a Hindu spiritual practice, yoga was not officially permitted for decades in Saudi Arabia, the cradle of Islam where…

Dutch populist Wilders cancels Prophet Mohammad cartoon contest

Controversial anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders on late Thursday (30) said he was cancelling plans to stage a Prophet Mohammad cartoon competition, a scheme that had angered many Muslims, particularly in Pakistan. The Dutch politician's announcement came after he said he had received several death threats. A man was arrested by police two days earlier on suspicion of…

Pakistan complains to Netherlands over Wilders Prophet Mohammed cartoon plans

Pakistan's new foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi complained to his Dutch counterpart on Tuesday (28) over a planned anti-Islam cartoon contest, saying "such acts spread hate and intolerance". Far-right Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders has planned the contest for later in the year, and caricatures of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed are…

More than two million Muslims begin hajj pilgrimage

More than two million Muslims from around the globe started the hajj pilgrimage on Sunday in Saudi Arabia, one of the world's largest annual gatherings in a country undergoing unprecedented change. The ultra-conservative kingdom -- where religion remains a guiding force amid dramatic social and economic reforms -- has mobilised…

Why barbers in Pakistan are banned from offering “fashionable” haircuts

HAIRDRESSERS in Pakistan's conservative northwest have announced a ban in their shops on "fashionable" beards, saying trendy facial hair violates Islamic law. The decision affecting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province echoes a similar ban introduced there more than a decade ago, after militant groups including the Pakistani Taliban threatened barbers with dire…

Bangladesh activist arrested on ‘anti-Islam’ charges

Bangladesh police arrested a 25-year-old social media activist as he tried to leave the country on charges that he defamed Islam and the Prophet Mohammed, authorities said Tuesday. Immigration police detained Asaduzzaman Noor, known as Asad Noor on his Youtube channel, at Dhaka airport on Monday evening, inspector Mohammad Shahidullah said.…

Pakistani man gets death sentence in Facebook blasphemy case

A Pakistani man has been sentenced to death for committing blasphemy on Facebook, lawyers said on Saturday (10), the first conviction on charges arising from social media. Judge Shabbir Ahmad Awan handed down the verdict in Bahawalpur, around 600 kilometres (372 miles) south of capital Islamabad, finding Taimoor Raza guilty…

Pakistani student accused of blasphemy beaten to death on campus

A mob beat a Pakistani student to death at his university campus on Thursday after he was accused of sharing blasphemous content on social media, university and police officials said. A group of about 10 students shouted "Allahu Akbar" during the attack on fellow student Mashal Khan, who was stripped…

IS claims killing of Hindu tailor in Bangladesh

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the murder of a Hindu tailor in central Bangladesh on Saturday, a US-based monitoring group said. Nikhil Chandra Joarder, who was hacked to death by at least two attackers outside his shop, may have been killed for making derogatory remarks about the…

Three held over Bangladesh Hindu tailor’s murder

Bangladesh police detained three people on Sunday over the gruesome murder of a Hindu tailor one day earlier, the latest deadly attack on minorities claimed by the Islamic State group. A senior officer said the principal of an Islamic madrassa and two others were being held for questioning over the…

Masses honour slain Sabri

SUNNI AND SHI’ITE MOURNERS UNITED AT FUNERAL OF SUFI MUSICIAN THOUSANDS of Pakistanis last Thursday (23) thronged the streets of Karachi to attend the funeral of one of the country’s best-knownSufi musicians, who was gunned down a day earlier in what police called an “act of terror”. The funeral prayers…