Sectarian violence in Pakistan: Difference between revisions
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{{short description|Religious sectarian violence}} |
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{{EngvarB|date=December 2016}} |
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{{Update|date=December 2023|reason=Updates needed past 5 August 2022}} |
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{{EngvarB|date=December 2023}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}} |
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{{Infobox military conflict |
{{Infobox military conflict |
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| conflict = Sectarian violence in Pakistan |
| conflict = Sectarian violence in Pakistan |
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| partof |
| partof = |
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|date = |
| date = 1970 – ''present''<br />({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|year=1970}}) |
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| place = |
| place = [[Pakistan]] |
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| result = Some success in reduction of killings and attacks on civilians<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1525816|title=Decline in terrorism|date=2 January 2020 |agency=Dawn |access-date=2 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://satp.org/datasheet-terrorist-attack/fatalities/pakistan-khyberpakhtunkhwa|title=Database – KPK from 2005 to present |publisher=SATP |access-date=2 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://satp.org/datasheet-terrorist-attack/fatalities/pakistan-fata|title=Database – FATA from 2005 to present |publisher=SATP |access-date=2 August 2023}}</ref> |
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| result = [[List of ongoing conflicts|Ongoing]] |
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* Intermittent series of multilateral talks underway with groups specially with [[Pakistan and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan peace talks|Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan]].<ref>{{cite web |title=TTP extends ceasefire till May 30 after 'successful' talks |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/2357124/ttp-extends-ceasefire-till-may-30-after-successful-talks |website=The Express Tribune |access-date=18 May 2022 |language=en |date=18 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Khan |first1=Tahir |title=TTP extends ceasefire until May 30 as talks continue in Afghanistan |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1690288/ttp-extends-ceasefire-until-may-30-as-talks-continue-in-afghanistan |website=DAWN.COM |access-date=18 May 2022 |language=en |date=18 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Pakistan Taliban extend truce for more talks with government |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pakistan-taliban-extend-truce-for-more-talks-with-government/2022/05/18/415135b8-d697-11ec-be17-286164974c54_story.html |newspaper=Washington Post |access-date=18 May 2022}}</ref> |
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| combatant1 = '''Sunni factions:''' |
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* 2022 [[ceasefire]] ended as of 2023 between [[Government of Pakistan]] and [[Pakistani Taliban]]. |
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*[[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] |
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* The [[Pakistani Taliban]] announced re-insurgency in [[Pakistan]] & series of attacks started by [[Pakistani Taliban]].<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Baloch |first1=Shah Meer |last2=Ellis-Petersen |first2=Hannah |date=31 January 2023 |title=North-west Pakistan in grip of deadly Taliban resurgence |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/31/terrorists-north-west-pakistan-deadly-taliban-resurgence |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131111529/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/31/terrorists-north-west-pakistan-deadly-taliban-resurgence |archive-date=31 January 2023 |access-date=31 January 2023 |website=[[The Guardian]] |language=en}}</ref> |
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*[[Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan]] |
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* [[List of ongoing conflicts|Ongoing]] (Low level) insurgency<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1080/09592318.2016.1266128 | volume=28 | title=Counter-Insurgency in Pakistan: The Role of Legitimacy | year=2017 | journal=Small Wars & Insurgencies | pages=166–190 | last1 = Lieven | first1 = Anatol| s2cid=151355749 }}</ref> |
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*[[Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jammat]] |
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| combatant1 = '''Terrorist & extremist groups''' |
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*[[Jundallah (Pakistan)|Jundallah]] |
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*[[File:Flag of Tehrik-i-Taliban.svg|25px]] [[Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan]] |
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*[[Al-Qaeda]] |
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**[[Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan]]<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2023-11-04 |title=Pakistan Airbase In Mianwali Under Attack By Tehreek-e-Jihad; Loud Explosions And Smoke...... |url=https://news.abplive.com/videos/news/india-pakistan-airbase-in-mianwali-under-attack-by-tehreek-e-jihad-loud-explosions-and-smoke-1640466/amp |access-date=2023-11-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231104165600/https://news.abplive.com/videos/news/india-pakistan-airbase-in-mianwali-under-attack-by-tehreek-e-jihad-loud-explosions-and-smoke-1640466/amp |archive-date=2023-11-04 }}</ref> |
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*[[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of Turkistan Islamic Party.svg}} [[East Turkestan Islamic Movement]] (the group lost territories in 2015<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-pakistan-idUSKCN0SC06P20151018|title = Pakistan says has eliminated Uighur militants from territory|newspaper = Reuters|date = 18 October 2015}}</ref> & active until 2017 in [[North Waziristan|Waziristan]])<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bennett-Jones |first1=Owen |title=North Waziristan: What happened after militants lost the battle? |work=BBC News |date=8 March 2017 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-39191868 |access-date=3 May 2020}}</ref> |
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*[[Lashkar-e-Farooqi]] |
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*[[File:Flag of Jihad.svg|22px]] [[Jama'at al-Jihad al-Islami|Islamic Jihad Union]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Tehreek-e-Labbaik flag.png}} [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan]]<ref name=":3">{{cite web|date=2021-04-17|title=Islamist party Tehreek-e-Labbaik fuels anti-France violence in Pakistans|url=https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20210417-islamist-party-tehrik-e-labbaik-fuels-anti-france-violence-in-pakistan|access-date=2021-04-18|website=France 24|language=en}}{{cite web|url=https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/india/tlp-worker-pulls-down-maharaja-ranjit-singhs-statue-in-pakistan-7349201.html|title=TLP worker pulls down Maharaja Ranjit Singh's statue in Pakistan|date=17 August 2021 }}{{cite web|last=Ali|first=Imran Gabol {{!}} Shakeel Qarar {{!}} Imtiaz|date=2021-04-14|title=Government has decided to ban TLP, says interior minister|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1618186|access-date=2021-04-14|website=dawn.com|language=en}}{{cite web|title=Govt decides to ban TLP under anti-terror law|url=https://www.geo.tv/latest/345260-govt-decides-to-ban-tlp-under-terror-law|access-date=2021-04-14|website=www.geo.tv|language=en}}</ref> (15 April 2021 – 7 November 2021)<ref>{{Cite news|date=2021-11-07|title=Cabinet okays revocation of TLP's proscribed status|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1656594|access-date=2021-11-07|work=Dawn (newspaper)|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=7 November 2021|title=TLP no longer proscribed outfit after govt removes name from first schedule of anti-terrorism act|work=[[Geo News]]|url=https://www.geo.tv/latest/380865-govt|access-date=7 November 2021}}</ref> |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of Jihad.svg}} [[Abdullah Azzam Brigade]]<ref>[http://www.upi.com/Emerging_Threats/2009/06/11/New-groups-takes-credit-for-Pakistan-blast/UPI-35741244744635/ New groups takes credit for Pakistan blast], [[United Press International]], 2009-06-11</ref> |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of Jihad.svg}} [[Hizb ut-Tahrir]] |
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*[[Lashkar-e-Omar]] |
*[[Lashkar-e-Omar]] |
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*[[Haji Namdar Group]] |
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*[[Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi]] |
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*[[Lashkar-e- |
*[[Lashkar-e-Islam]] |
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*[[Fedayeen al-Islam]] |
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*[[Hizb-ul-Mujahideen]] |
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*[[ |
*[[Jamaat-ul-Ahrar]] |
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*[[Ahrar-ul-Hind]] |
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*[[Jaish-e-Mohammed Mujahideen-E-Tanzeem]] |
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*[[ |
*[[Ansar ul-Mujahideen]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of Jaish al-Adl.svg}} [[Jaish ul-Adl]] (against both [[Iran]] & [[Pakistan]] since 2012) |
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*[[Al Badr]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of al-Qaeda.svg|size=23px}} [[Al-Qaeda]] ([[al-Qaeda in the Indian subcontinent|AQIS]]) |
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*[[Jamiat-ul-Mujahideen]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of Sipah-e-Sahaba.jpg}} [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] |
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*[[Jammat-e-Islami]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag_of_Lashkar-e-Jhangvi.svg}} [[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] |
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*[[Muttahida Deeni Mahaz]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Tnsm-flag.svg}} [[Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi]] |
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*[[Harkat-ul-Jehad-al-islam]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Flag of Jihad.svg}} [[Ansarul Sharia Pakistan]] |
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*[[Tehrik-e-Jihad]] |
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'''[[Baloch nationalism|Baloch separatist groups:]]''' |
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*[[Islami Inqilabi Mahaz]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Balochistan flag.svg}} [[Balochistan Liberation Army|BLA]] |
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*[[Al Umar Mujahideen]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Balochistan flag.svg}} [[Balochistan Liberation Front|BLF]] |
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*[[Al Jihad]] |
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*{{flagicon image|Balochistan flag.svg}} [[Lashkar-e-Balochistan|LeB]] |
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*[[Tehrik ul Mujahideen]] |
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*{{noflag|[[Balochistan Liberation United Front|BLUF]]}} |
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*{{noflag|[[Baloch Students Organization|BSO (Azad)]]}} |
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*{{flagicon image|Balochistan flag.svg}} [[Baloch Republican Army|BRA]] (2006–2022) |
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*{{flagicon image|Balochistan flag.svg}} [[United Baloch Army|UBA]] (2013–2022) |
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*{{flagicon image|Balochistan flag.svg}} [[Baloch Nationalist Army|BNA]] (2022–2023) |
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{{flagdeco|ISIL}} '''Islamic State-Aligned groups''' |
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*{{flagdeco|ISIL}} [[Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan]] (until 2015) |
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*{{flagdeco|ISIL}} [[Jundallah (Pakistan)|Jundallah]] (until 2014) |
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*{{flagdeco|ISIL}} Tehreek-e-Khilafat (from 2014)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2014/11/isis-now-has-military-allies-in-11-countries.html|title=ISIS Now Has a Network of Military Affiliates in 11 Countries Around the World|website=Intelligencer|date=23 November 2014 }}</ref> |
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*{{flagdeco|ISIL}} [[Khorasan Province (Militant Group)|Wilayat Khorasan]] (from 2015) |
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'''Islamic State-Unorganized cell''' |
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*{{flagdeco|ISIL}} [[Territory of the Islamic State#Afghanistan and Pakistan|Pakistan Province]]<ref>{{cite web |title=IS Delineates "Khorasan Province" from "Pakistan Province" in Attack Claims, One Involving Targeted Killing in Rawalpindi |website=Jihadist Threat |publisher=SITE Intelligence Group |date=24 November 2021 |url=https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Statements/is-delineates-khorasan-province-from-pakistan-province-in-attack-claims-one-involving-targeted-killing-in-rawalpindi.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=9 September 2022 |archive-date=18 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118194348/https://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Statements/is-delineates-khorasan-province-from-pakistan-province-in-attack-claims-one-involving-targeted-killing-in-rawalpindi.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
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* Other insurgent, terrorist & extremist groups |
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| combatant2 = '''{{flagicon|Pakistan}} [[Islamic Republic of Pakistan|Pakistan]]''' |
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*{{flagicon image|State emblem of Pakistan.svg|border=no}} [[Government of Pakistan]] |
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*{{flagicon|Pakistan}} [[Ministry of Interior (Pakistan)|Ministry of Interior]] |
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* [[File:Armed Forces of Pakistan Flag.svg|25px]] [[Pakistan Armed Forces]] |
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** {{army|PAK}} |
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** {{air force|PAK}} |
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** {{navy|PAK}} |
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* [[File:Former logo of Punjab Police Pakistan.svg|25px]] [[Law enforcement in Pakistan|Pakistan Police]] |
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** [[Counter Terrorism Department (Pakistan)|Counter Terrorism Department]] |
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*[[Civil Armed Forces]] |
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** [[Frontier Corps]] |
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** [[Pakistan Rangers]] |
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*[[Pakistani intelligence community]] |
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* The victims: |
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** [[Shia Islam in Pakistan|Shia Muslims]] (main victims)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/11/201211269131968565.html|title=Pakistan's Shia genocide|first=Murtaza|last=Hussain|website=Aljazeera.com|access-date=18 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190326045008/https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/11/201211269131968565.html|archive-date=26 March 2019|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://www.sciencespo.fr/mass-violence-war-massacre-resistance/fr/document/thematic-chronology-mass-violence-pakistan-1947-2007|title=Thematic Chronology of Mass Violence in Pakistan, 1947–2007 – Sciences Po Violence de masse et Résistance – Réseau de recherche|website=Sciencespo.fr|access-date=18 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190324230854/https://www.sciencespo.fr/mass-violence-war-massacre-resistance/fr/document/thematic-chronology-mass-violence-pakistan-1947-2007|archive-date=24 March 2019|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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** Anti-sectarianist [[Sunni Islam in Pakistan|Sunni Muslims]] |
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** [[Ahmadiyya in Pakistan|Ahmadis]] |
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** [[Hinduism in Pakistan|Hindus]] |
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** [[Christianity in Pakistan|Christians]] |
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** [[Sikhism in Pakistan|Sikhs]] |
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** Other [[Ethnic groups in Pakistan|communities]] and [[religions in Pakistan]] |
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| commander1 = Unknown |
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| commander2 = Unknown |
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| casualties1 = Since 1947, tens of thousands of Shia were killed in Pakistan by militants<ref name="auto"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/07/07/pakistans-shia-under-attack|title=Pakistan's Shia Under Attack|date=7 July 2014|website=Human Rights Watch|access-date=18 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330215004/https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/07/07/pakistans-shia-under-attack|archive-date=30 March 2019|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/29/pakistan-rampant-killings-shia-extremists|title=Pakistan: Rampant Killings of Shia by Extremists|date=29 June 2014|website=Human Rights Watch|access-date=18 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403134747/https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/29/pakistan-rampant-killings-shia-extremists|archive-date=3 April 2019|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://blog.siasat.pk/evidence-anti-shia-hashtag-mapping/|title= Anti-Shia Hashtag Mapping Shows That 80% Of The Accounts Were Operating From India|date=20 September 2020|work=Siasat.pk|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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| notes = }} |
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'''Sectarian violence in Pakistan''' refers to violence directed against people and places in [[Pakistan]] motivated by antagonism toward the target's religious sect. As many as 4,000 [[Shia]] (a [[Muslim]] minority group) are estimated to have been killed in sectarian attacks in Pakistan between 1987 and 2007,<ref name="csmonitor-rises-2007">{{Cite news|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0202/p01s02-wosc.html|title=Shiite-Sunni conflict rises in Pakistan|last=Montero|first=David|date=2007-02-02|newspaper=Christian Science Monitor|issn=0882-7729|access-date=2016-10-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517044921/http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0202/p01s02-wosc.html|archive-date=17 May 2008|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and thousands more Shia have been killed by [[Salafi]] extremists from 2008 to 2014, according to [[Human Rights Watch]] (HRW).<ref name=HRW-2014/> Sunni (the largest Muslim sect) [[Sufi]]s and [[Barelvi]]s<ref name="LC-CP-2005-8">{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|title=Country Profile: Pakistan|year=2005 |page=8|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050717171649/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|archive-date=17 July 2005|url-status=live|df=dmy-all |quote=''Religion: The overwhelming majority of the population (96.3 percent) is Muslim, of whom approximately 95 percent are Sunni and 5 percent Shia.'' |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |access-date=1 September 2023 }}</ref>{{notetag| On the other hand, the CIA Factbook estimates Sunnis make up 85-90% of the Muslim population and Shia 10-15%. <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/pakistan/#people-and-society |title=The World Factbook. Pakistan |website=CIA |access-date=2 September 2023}}</ref>}} have also suffered from some sectarian violence, |
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| combatant3= |
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with attacks on religious shrines killing hundreds of (usually Bareelvi) worshippers<ref name="NOREF"/> (more orthodox Sunni believing shrine culture to be idolatrous),<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/><ref name=critical>{{cite web |url=http://criticalppp.com/archives/239339 |title=Sunni Ittehad Council: Sunni Barelvi activism against Deobandi-Wahhabi terrorism in Pakistan – by Aarish U. Khan |access-date=12 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130123005941/http://criticalppp.com/archives/239339 |archive-date=23 January 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name=NYTSufivideo/> and some Deobandi leaders assassinated. Pakistan minority religious groups, including [[Hinduism in Pakistan|Hindus]], [[Ahmadiyya|Ahmadis]], and [[Christianity in Pakistan|Christians]], have "faced unprecedented insecurity and persecution" in at least two recent years (2011 and 2012), according to [[Human Rights Watch]].<ref name=timeline>{{cite news|title=Timeline: Persecution of religious minorities|url=http://dawn.com/2012/11/04/timeline-persecution-of-religious-minorities/|newspaper=Dawn|date=4 November 2012|access-date=6 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130305165833/http://dawn.com/2012/11/04/timeline-persecution-of-religious-minorities/|archive-date=5 March 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=World Report 2012: Pakistan|date=22 January 2012|url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report-2012/world-report-2012-pakistan|publisher=Human Rights Watch|access-date=6 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218110619/http://www.hrw.org/world-report-2012/world-report-2012-pakistan|archive-date=18 February 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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*'''[[Shia Muslims]]''' |
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One significant aspect of the attacks in Pakistan is that militants often target their victims [[place of worship|places of worship]] during prayers or religious services in order to maximize fatalities and to "emphasize the religious dimensions of their attack".<ref name=roul-26-6-2015/> |
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*'''[[Ahmadi]]''' |
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*[[Hindus]] |
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Among those blamed for the sectarian violence in the country are mainly [[Deobandi]] militant groups, such as the [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] (SSP), [[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] (LeJ), the [[Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan]] (TTP),<ref name="BBC2002">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1758534.stm |title=Pakistan's militant Islamic groups |date=13 January 2002 |quote=[[Sipah-e-Muhammad]] or the Army of Prophet Mohammad is a radical group from the minority Shia sect of |access-date=7 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091029184203/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1758534.stm |archive-date=29 October 2009 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all }}</ref> and also the [[Jundallah (Pakistan)|Jundallah]] (an affiliate of the [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]]).<ref name="roul-26-6-2015">{{cite journal|last1=Roul|first1=Animesh|title=Growing Islamic State Influence in Pakistan Fuels Sectarian Violence|journal=Terrorism Monitor|date=26 June 2015|volume=13|issue=13|url=http://www.jamestown.org/programs/tm/single/?tx_ttnews[tt_news]=44083&tx_ttnews[backPid]=26&cHash=48d507d49abec49f73d4640cb2d342f9#.VZLZRVJggg4|access-date=30 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706041024/http://www.jamestown.org/programs/tm/single/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=44083&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=26&cHash=48d507d49abec49f73d4640cb2d342f9#.VZLZRVJggg4|archive-date=6 July 2015|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan "has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks" on Shia according to Human Rights Watch.<ref name="HRW-2014">{{cite web|title=Pakistan: Rampant Killings of Shia by Extremists|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/29/pakistan-rampant-killings-shia-extremists|publisher=Human Rights Watch|access-date=16 November 2014|date=30 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129020929/http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/29/pakistan-rampant-killings-shia-extremists|archive-date=29 November 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In recent years the [[Barelvi]] group [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan]] (Labbaik) has been credited with instigating much violence.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> [[Salafi]] militant groups (such as [[Islamic State – Khorasan Province|Islamic State]]) are also blamed for attacks on Shias, Barelvis and Sufis.<ref name=bbc011302>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1758534.stm |title=Pakistan's militant Islamic groups |work=[[BBC News]] |date=13 January 2002 |access-date=7 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091029184203/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1758534.stm |archive-date=29 October 2009 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ramansterrorismanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/09/attacks-on-shias-in-pakistan-message-to.html|title=ATTACKS ON SHIAS IN PAKISTAN, A MESSAGE TO IRAN TOO: INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR—PAPER NO. 674|publisher=South Asian Analysis|date=24 November 2014|access-date=24 November 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref> As of 2022, violent sectarian groups continue to expand their influence across the country, with less violence from SSP and LeJ, but more from Labbaik<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> and the Islamic State, and limited response from the state to counter their large-scale attacks.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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*[[Christians]] |
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*[[Sikhs]] |
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'''Sectarian Violence in Pakistan: 1989-2018'''<ref>{{cite web|title=Sectarian Violence in Pakistan: 1989-2018 | url=https://www.satp.org/satporgto/countries/pakistan/database/sect-killing.htm |publisher=South Asian Terrorism Portal |access-date=27 July 2023}}{{dead link|date=September 2023}}</ref> |
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*[[Sufis]] |
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{{ #invoke:Chart| bar-chart |
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| casualties1 = |
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| group 1 = 67 : 274 : 180 : 135 : 90 : 162 : 88 : 80 : 103 : 188 : 103 : 109 : 154 : 63 : 22 : 19 : 62 : 38 : 341 : 97 : 106 : 57 : 30 : 173 : 131 : 91 : 53 : 35 : 16 : 5 |
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| casualties2 = |
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| group 2 = 18 : 32 : 47 : 58 : 39 : 73 : 59 : 86 : 193 : 157 : 86 : 149 : 261 : 121 : 102 : 187 : 160 : 201 : 441 : 306 : 190 : 509 : 203 : 507 : 558 : 208 : 276 : 137 : 231 : 7 |
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| casualties3 = |
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| notes = |
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| colors = black: red |
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| group names = incidents: killed |
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| x legends = :1990::::::::::2000::::::::::2010:::::::: |
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}} |
}} |
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==Terminology== |
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'''Sectarian violence in Pakistan''' refers to attacks against people and places in [[Pakistan]] motivated by antagonism toward the target's sect, usually a religious group. Targets in Pakistan include the [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]], [[Shia Islam in Pakistan|Shia]],<ref name="LoC">{{Cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf |title=Country Profile: Pakistan 75.6 % |date=February 2005 |work=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]] on Pakistan |quote=''Religion: The overwhelming majority of the population (96.3 percent) is Muslim, of whom approximately percent are Sunni and 25 percent Shia.'' |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |accessdate=1 September 2010}}</ref> [[Sufism|Sufi]], and the small [[Ahmadi]], [[Hindu]] and [[Christian]] religious groups. As many as 4,000 people are estimated to have been killed in Shia-Sunni sectarian fighting in Pakistan between 1987–2007.<ref name="csmonitor.com">{{Cite news|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0202/p01s02-wosc.html|title=Shiite-Sunni conflict rises in Pakistan|last=Montero|first=David|date=2007-02-02|newspaper=Christian Science Monitor|issn=0882-7729|access-date=2016-10-01}}</ref> And since 2008 "thousands of Shia" have been killed by Sunni extremists according to the human rights group [[Human Rights Watch]].<ref name=HRW-2014/> |
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Sectarian refers to sects or religious groups in this article. Although "Sectarianism" can refer to conflict between ethnic, political and cultural as well as religious groups, and there is sometimes an overlap between religious and ethnic groups and fights (according to the U.S. Library of Congress, violence is often based on "different social, political, and economic statuses that correlate with religion" rather than religious doctrine;<ref name="LC-CP-2005-26">{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|title=Country Profile: Pakistan|year=2005|publisher=Library of Congress|page=26|access-date=28 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050717171649/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|archive-date=17 July 2005|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> the Pakistan military, for example, has allegedly used the [[Deobandi]] sectarian group [[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] "as a proxy to counter Baloch separatist militants"),<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> in the context of Pakistan, sectarian usually refers to sects or religious groups.{{notetag|example of distinguishing between sectarian and ethnic violence: "As discussed earlier, the 9/11 incident is considered as an important landmark in a strategic policy shift that pushed Pakistan to face a historically severe wave of terrorism. It was not just sectarian or ethnic terrorism but stretched out to target military barracks, defence installations, ..."<ref name="Syed-2021">{{cite journal |author1=Syed Ali Abbas |author2=Shabib Haider Syed |title=Sectarian terrorism in Pakistan: Causes, impact and remedies |journal=Journal of Policy Modeling |date=March–April 2021 |volume=43 350-361 |issue=2 |pages=350–361 |doi=10.1016/j.jpolmod.2020.06.004 |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0161893820300946 |access-date=5 August 2023|hdl=10072/402822 |s2cid=225324998 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>}} (For ethnic and regional [[separatist]] violence in Pakistan, see [[Separatist movements of Pakistan]].) |
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One significant aspect of the attacks on Shi'a in Pakistan is that militants often target Shi’a worshipping places (Imambargah) during prayers in order to maximize fatalities and to "emphasize the religious dimensions of their attack".<ref name=roul-26-6-2015/> |
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Human Rights Watch also states that in 2011 and 2012 Pakistan minority groups Hindus, Ahmadi, and Christians "faced unprecedented insecurity and persecution in the country".<ref name=timeline>{{cite news|title=Timeline: Persecution of religious minorities|url=http://dawn.com/2012/11/04/timeline-persecution-of-religious-minorities/|newspaper=DAWN.COM {{!}}|date=4 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=World Report 2012: Pakistan|url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report-2012/world-report-2012-pakistan|publisher=Human Rights Watch|accessdate=6 March 2013}}</ref> Attacks on Sufi shrines by [[Salafi]]<nowiki/>s have also been reported.<ref name=critical>{{cite web|url=http://criticalppp.com/archives/239339 |title=Sunni Ittehad Council: Sunni Barelvi activism against Deobandi-Wahhabi terrorism in Pakistan – by Aarish U. Khan |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref><ref name=NYTSufivideo/> |
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Sectarian violence is not exclusively non-governmental. In literature on "sectarian groups" in Pakistan, the groups referred to are non-governmental, but governmental actors have been accused of sectarianism and aiding sectarian groups. Police have been accused of refusing to prevent sectarian acts, of refusing "to charge persons who commit them",{{notetag|"Three sources reported word for word that 'discriminatory religious legislation has encouraged an atmosphere of religious intolerance, which has led to acts of violence directed against minority Muslim sects, as well as against Christians, Hindus, and members of Muslim offshoot sects such as Ahmadis and Zikris' (Country Reports 1997, 1998; IND Mar. 1999, 29; Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 1999 9 Sept. 1999). The 9 September 1999 US Department of State publication Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 1999 added that "police at times refuse to prevent such actions or to charge persons who commit them."<ref>{{cite web |title=Pakistan: The Zikri faith, including its origins, the tenets, number of adherents, whether its adherents are easily distinguishable from non-adherents, and the treatment of adherents by the authorities and Muslim extremist groups (1984 to present) |url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad738.html |website=Ref World |publisher=Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |access-date=8 August 2023 |date=16 December 1999}}</ref> see also: {{cite news |last1=Baloch |first1=Kiyya |title=Who Is Responsible for Persecuting Pakistan's Minorities? Islamists in Balochistan are targeting minorities, yet NGOs are beginning to blame the government too. |url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/11/who-is-responsible-for-persecuting-pakistans-minorities/ |access-date=8 August 2023 |agency=The Diplomat |date=12 November 2014}} }} and government officials have been accused of helping the formation of sectarian terror groups. (For example General [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq]] helped [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] (SSP)){{notetag|"In 1985, however, in an effort to promote Sunni orthodoxy, Zia’s regime backed the creation in Jhang of a Deobandi group called Sipahe-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP)"<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/>}} though this doesn't mean that SSP didn't attempt to kill other government officials (Prime Minister [[Nawaz Sharif]] and Punjab police investigating SSP crimes) some years later.{{notetag|"Along with attacking Shias, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi also assassinated or threatened Punjab police investigating its crimes.<ref>Arif Jamal, "A profile of Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Jhangvi", ''CTC Sentinel'', September 2009. {{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |pages=2–3 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 }}</ref> As the sectarian outfit challenged the state’s writ in Punjab, the country’s largest province and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s ... . Those efforts picked up after Lashkar-e-Jhangvi tried to assassinate Sharif in January 1999.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-2-3">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |pages=2–3 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 }}</ref>}} And if sectarian violence includes forced disappearances,{{notetag|for example "according to a Shia political leader, the number of [Shia] people missing [because of "enforced disappearances" by the security services] has decreased to fewer than 50 from a high of several hundred; some are believed to have died in detention")<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 |pages=8–14 }}</ref>}} than police in Pakistan have also been accused of sectarian violence. |
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Sectarian violence is often, but not necessarily, terrorist (attacks on unarmed civilians) in Pakistan, but there have also been violence between armed sectarians.{{notetag|An example being a July 1987 fight in Parachinar, where Sunni conservative Sunni Mujahideen attacked local Shia armed with locally made automatic rifles.<ref name=":03"/> Reportedly 52 Shia and 120 Sunni attackers lost their lives in several days of fighting.<ref name=Rieck-229>A. Rieck, ''The Shias of Pakistan'', p. 229, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref>}} |
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Among those blamed for the sectarian violence in the country are mainly Sunni militant groups, such as the [[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]], [[Sipah-e-Sahaba]], [[Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan]] (affiliates of [[Al-Qaeda]]),<ref name="BBC2002">{{Cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1758534.stm |title=Pakistan's militant Islamic groups |date=13 January 2002 |quote=[[Sipah-e-Sahaba]] or the Army of Prophet Mohammad's companions is a radical group from the majority Sunni sect of Islam}}</ref> [[Jundallah (Pakistan)|Jundallah]] (affiliates of [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]]).<ref name=roul-26-6-2015>{{cite journal|last1=Roul|first1=Animesh|title=Growing Islamic State Influence in Pakistan Fuels Sectarian Violence|journal=Terrorism Monitor|date=26 June 2015|volume=13|issue=13|url=http://www.jamestown.org/programs/tm/single/?tx_ttnews[tt_news]=44083&tx_ttnews[backPid]=26&cHash=48d507d49abec49f73d4640cb2d342f9#.VZLZRVJggg4|accessdate=30 June 2015}}</ref> [[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] "has claimed responsibility for most attacks" on Shia according to Human Rights Watch.<ref name=HRW-2014>{{cite web|title=Pakistan: Rampant Killings of Shia by Extremists|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/29/pakistan-rampant-killings-shia-extremists|publisher=Human Rights Watch|accessdate=16 November 2014|date=30 June 2014}}</ref> Sunni militant groups are also blamed for attacks on fellow Sunnis, [[Barelvi]]s and [[Sufi]]s.<ref name=bbc011302/> These attacks sometimes result in tit-for-tat reprisal attacks by Shia victims.<ref name=bbc011302>{{Cite web|url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1758534.stm |title=Pakistan's militant Islamic groups |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=13 January 2002}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url= http://ramansterrorismanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/09/attacks-on-shias-in-pakistan-message-to.html |title=ATTACKS ON SHIAS IN PAKISTAN, A MESSAGE TO IRAN TOO: INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR—PAPER NO. 674 |publisher=[[South Asian Analysis]] |date=24 November 2014}}</ref> |
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==Religions and sects== |
==Religions and sects== |
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===Muslims=== |
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;Shia and Sunni |
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Approximately 97% of Pakistanis are either Sunni or Shia Muslims,<ref name="Oxford"/> the two largest religious groups in Pakistan. In Pakistan as worldwide, Shia Islam constitutes a minority<ref name="PRC" /><ref name="PRCPDF" /><ref name="PBS" /><ref name="BritShia">{{Cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540503/Shiite |title=Shīʿite |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |quote=''Shīʿites have come to account for roughly [[decile|one-tenth]] of the Muslim population worldwide.'' |year=2010 |access-date=25 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100809124154/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540503/Shiite |archive-date=9 August 2010 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html |title=Religions |access-date=29 August 2010 |work=[[CIA]] |publisher=[[The World Factbook]] |quote=''Shia Islam represents 20% of Muslims worldwide...'' |year=2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604221011/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html |archive-date=4 June 2011 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> and Sunni a majority of Muslims.<ref name="Britannica">{{Cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574006/Sunnite |title=Sunnite |access-date=24 August 2010 |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |quote=''They numbered about 900 million in the late 20th century and constituted [[decile|nine-tenths]] of all the adherents of Islām.'' |year=2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100809124159/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574006/Sunnite |archive-date=9 August 2010 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all }}</ref> |
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Estimates of the size of the two largest religious groups in Pakistan vary. According to [[Library of Congress]], [[Pew Research Center]], [[Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies|Oxford University]], the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] [[The World Factbook|Factbook]] and other experts, adherents of [[Shi'a Islam in Pakistan]] make up between 5-20% of the country's total population.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|title=Country Profile: Pakistan|date=February 2005|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|quote=''Religion: The overwhelming majority of the population (96.3 percent) is Muslim, of whom approximately 75 percent are Sunni and 25 percent Shia.''|work=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]] on Pakistan|accessdate=2010-09-01}}</ref><ref name=":122">{{Cite web|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2012/08/09/the-worlds-muslims-unity-and-diversity-executive-summary/|title=The World's Muslims: Unity and Diversity|last=|first=|date=9 August 2012|website=Pew Research Center|publisher=|access-date=26 December 2016|quote=On the other hand, in Pakistan, where 6% of the survey respondents identify as Shia, Sunni attitudes are more mixed: 50% say Shias are Muslims, while 41% say they are not.}}</ref><ref name="CIA2">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html?countryName=Pakistan&countryCode=pk®ionCode=sas&#pk|title=Religions: Muslim 95% (Sunni 75%, Shia 20%), other (includes Christian and Hindu) 5%|year=2010|publisher=[[The World Factbook]] on Pakistan|accessdate=2010-08-24|work=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]}}</ref><ref name="PRC2">{{Cite book|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2009/10/07/mapping-the-global-muslim-population/|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|date=October 2009|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|editor-last=Miller|editor-first=Tracy|accessdate=2015-10-07}}</ref><ref name="Oxford2">{{cite web|url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1809?_hi=1&_pos=1|title=Pakistan, Islam in|date=|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|quote=''Approximately 97 percent of Pakistanis are Muslim. The majority are Sunnis following the Hanafi school of Islamic law. Between 10 and 15 percent are Shias, mostly Twelvers.''|accessdate=2010-08-29|work=[[Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies]]}}</ref><ref name="State2">{{cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm|title=Pakistan - International Religious Freedom Report 2008|publisher=|quote=''The majority of Muslims in the country are Sunni, with a Shi'a minority ranging between 10 to 20 percent.''|work=[[United States Department of State]]|accessdate=2010-08-28}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsweekpakistan.com/the-trouble-with-madrassahs/|title=THE TROUBLE WITH MADRASSAHS}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://thediplomat.com/2014/05/early-warning-signs-of-shia-genocide-in-pakistan/|title=Early Warning Signs of Shia Genocide in Pakistan}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/26/us-pakistan-attack-idUSBRE96P0NE20130726|title=Suicide bombs kill 39 near Shi'ite mosques in Pakistan|date=26 July 2013|publisher=[[Reuters]]|last2=Ahmad|first2=Jibran|first1=Javed|last1=Hussain}}</ref> while the remaining 75–95%<ref name="LoC2">{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|title=Country Profile: Pakistan|date=February 2005|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|quote=Religion: The overwhelming majority of the population (96.3 percent) is Muslim, of whom approximately 95 percent are Sunni and 5 percent Shia.|work=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]] on Pakistan|accessdate=2010-09-01}}</ref><ref name="CIA3">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html?countryName=Pakistan&countryCode=pk®ionCode=sas&#pk|title=Religions: Muslim 95% (Sunni 75%, Shia 20%), other|year=2010|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]|department=Pakistan (includes Christian and Hindu) 5%|accessdate=2010-08-28|work=[[The World Factbook]]}}</ref><ref name="PRC3">{{cite web|url=http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|date=7 October 2009|publisher=|accessdate=2010-08-28|work=[[Pew Research Center]]}}</ref><ref name="PRCPDF2">{{Cite book|url=http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|date=October 2009|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|editor-last=Miller|editor-first=Tracy|format=PDF|accessdate=2010-08-28}}</ref><ref name="State3">{{cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm|title=Pakistan - International Religious Freedom Report 2008|publisher=|quote=|work=[[United States Department of State]]|accessdate=2010-08-28}}</ref> are [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]]. |
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Estimates of the size of these groups vary—adherents of [[Shi'a Islam in Pakistan]] are thought to make up between 9 and 15% of the population,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm |title=Pakistan – International Religious Freedom Report 2008 |quote=''The majority of Muslims in the country are Sunni, with a Shi'a minority ranging between 20 to 25 percent.'' |work=[[United States Department of State]] |access-date=28 August 2010}}</ref><ref name="PBS">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/pilgrimage-to-karbala/sunni-and-shia-the-worlds-of-islam/1737/ |title=Pilgrimage to Karbala – Sunni and Shia: The Worlds of Islam |date=26 March 2007 |publisher=[[PBS]] |access-date=1 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101013073809/http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/pilgrimage-to-karbala/sunni-and-shia-the-worlds-of-islam/1737/|archive-date=13 October 2010|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="CC">{{Cite journal |title=The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future |journal=Vali Nasr, Joanne J. Myers |quote=Pakistan has the second largest population of Shia, about 40 million, after Iran.|page=160 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BIXoGto8gTEC&dq=shia+revial+%22about+30+million%22&pg=PA160 |date=18 October 2006 |isbn=9780393329681 }}</ref> (roughly 30 million),<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, p. 160">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'' (Norton), 2006, p. 160</ref><ref name="PewMapping">{{cite web|url=http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|date=October 2009|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327201319/http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|archive-date=27 March 2010|editor=Tracy Miller|access-date=9 June 2010}}</ref><ref name="W.W. Norton">{{cite book|title=The Shia revival : how conflicts within Islam will shape the future|date=2007|publisher=W.W. Norton|isbn=978-0393329681|edition=Paperback|location=New York|last1=Nasr|first1=Vali}}</ref> and Sunni between 70 and 75%,<ref name="LoC">{{cite web |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf |title=Country Profile: Pakistan 75.6 % |date=February 2005 |work=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]] on Pakistan |quote=''Religion: The overwhelming majority of the population (96.3 percent) is Muslim, of whom approximately percent are Sunni and 9 percent Shia.'' |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |access-date=1 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050717171649/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf |archive-date=17 July 2005 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name="PRC"/><ref name="PRCPDF"/> (according experts such as the [[Library of Congress]],<ref name="LC-CP-2005-8"/> [[Pew Research Center]],<ref name="PRC">{{cite web|url= http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx |title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population |access-date=24 August 2010 |work=[[Pew Research Center]] |date=7 October 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327201319/http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|archive-date=27 March 2010|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="PRCPDF">{{Cite book|url=http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf |title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population |editor=Tracy Miller |year=2009 |publisher=[[Pew Research Center]] |access-date=25 August 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091010050756/http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf|archive-date=10 October 2009}}</ref> [[Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies|Oxford University]],<ref name="Oxford">{{cite web |title=Pakistan, Islam in |url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1809?_hi=1&_pos=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130618023219/http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e1809?_hi=1&_pos=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 June 2013 |work=[[Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |quote=''Approximately 97 percent of Pakistanis are Muslim. The majority are Sunnis following the Hanafi school of Islamic law. Between 10 and 15 percent are Shiis, mostly Twelvers.'' |access-date=29 August 2010}}</ref> the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] [[The World Factbook|World Factbook]]).<ref>{{Citation |title=Pakistan |date=2022-03-30 |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/pakistan/#people-and-society |work=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |language=en |access-date=2022-04-06}}</ref> While the overwhelming majority of Shia in Pakistan (and around the world) are [[Twelver Shi'ism|"Twelver" Shia]] (aka ''Asna-e-Ashari''), there are smaller Shi'i sects, such as varieties of Ismaili.<ref name="bus-BBC-2015">{{cite news |title=Karachi bus massacre: Who are the Ismailis? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-32721136 |access-date=9 August 2023 |agency=BBC News |date=13 May 2015}}</ref> |
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====Barelvi and Deobandi Sunni Muslims==== |
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Pakistan, like India, is said to have at least 16 million Shias.<ref name="CIAr2">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html?countryName=Pakistan&countryCode=pk®ionCode=sas&#pk|title=Field Listing : Religions|year=2010|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]|accessdate=24 August 2010|work=[[The World Factbook]]}}</ref><ref name="PewMapping">{{cite web|url=http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|date=October 2009|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327201319/http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|archivedate=27 March 2010|editor=Tracy Miller|accessdate=9 June 2010}}</ref><ref name="W.W. Norton">{{cite book|title=The Shia revival : how conflicts within Islam will shape the future|date=2007|publisher=W.W. Norton|isbn=0393329682|edition=Paperback|location=New York|last1=Nasr|first1=Vali}}</ref> A PEW survey in 2012 found that only 6% of Pakistani Muslims were Shia.<ref name=":122"/> Globally, [[Shia Islam]] constitutes 10–20%<ref name="PRC">{{Cite web|url=http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|date=7 October 2009|accessdate=24 August 2010|work=[[Pew Research Center]]}}</ref><ref name="PRCPDF">{{Cite book|url=http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf|title=Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|year=2009|format=PDF|editor=Tracy Miller|accessdate=25 August 2010}}</ref><ref name="PBS">{{Cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/pilgrimage-to-karbala/sunni-and-shia-the-worlds-of-islam/1737/|title=Pilgrimage to Karbala – Sunni and Shia: The Worlds of Islam|date=26 March 2007|publisher=[[PBS]]|accessdate=1 September 2010}}</ref><ref name="BritShia">{{Cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540503/Shiite |title=Shīʿite |work=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |quote=''Shīʿites have come to account for roughly [[decile|one-tenth]] of the Muslim population worldwide.'' |year=2010 |accessdate=25 August 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html |title=Religions |accessdate=29 August 2010 |work=[[CIA]] |publisher=[[The World Factbook]] |quote=''Shia Islam represents 20% of Muslims worldwide...'' |year=2010}}</ref> of the total [[Muslims]], while the remaining 80%–90% practice [[Sunni Islam]].<ref name="Britannica">{{Cite web|url= http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574006/Sunnite |title=Sunnite |accessdate=24 August 2010 |work=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |quote=''They numbered about 900 million in the late 20th century and constituted [[decile|nine-tenths]] of all the adherents of Islām.''|year=2010}}</ref> |
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There are two major Sunni sects in Pakistan, the [[Barelvi movement]] and [[Deobandi movement]]. Statistics regarding Pakistan's sects and sub-sects have been called "tenuous",<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> but estimates of the sizes of the two groups give a slight majority of Pakistan's population to followers of the Barelvi school, while 15–25% are thought to follow the Deobandi school of jurisprudence.<ref name=heritage.org-May2009>{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2009/05/Reviving-Pakistans-Pluralist-Traditions-to-Fight-Extremism | title=Reviving Pakistan's Pluralist Traditions to Fight Extremism | last1=Curtis |first1=Lisa |last2=Mullick |first2=Haider |date=4 May 2009 |access-date=2011-07-31 |publisher=[[The Heritage Foundation]]}}</ref><ref name="globalsecurity.org2">{{cite web |last=Pike |first=John |date=5 July 2011 |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/intro/islam-barelvi.htm |title=Barelvi Islam |publisher=[[GlobalSecurity.org]] |access-date=25 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031208063014/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/intro/islam-barelvi.htm |archive-date=8 December 2003 |url-status=live |quote=By one estimate, in Pakistan, the Shias are 18%, Ismailis 2%, Ahmediyas 2%, Barelvis 50%, Deobandis 20%, Ahle Hadith 4%, and other minorities 4%. [...] By another estimate some 15% of Pakistan's Sunni Muslims would consider themselves Deobandi, and some 60% are in the Barelvi tradition based mostly in the province of Punjab. But some 64% of the total seminaries are run by Deobandis, 25% by the Barelvis, 6% by the Ahle Hadith and 3% by various Shiite organisations.}}</ref><ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-8-quote">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 |quote=Sunni Barelvis are believed to constitute a thin majority of the population |pages=8–14 }}</ref> |
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===Smaller Muslim sects=== |
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;Ahmadi and Sunni |
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====Ahmadi==== |
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An estimated 0.22%-2.2% are [[Ahmadiyya|Ahmadi Muslims]],<ref name="ahmadi">The 1998 Pakistani census states that there are 291,000 (0.22%) Ahmadis in Pakistan. However, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has boycotted the census since 1974 which renders official Pakistani figures to be inaccurate. Independent groups have estimated the Pakistani Ahmadiyya population to be somewhere between 2 million and 5 million Ahmadis. However, the 4 million figure is the most quoted figure and is approximately 2.2% of the country. See: |
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{{main|Ahmadiyya}} |
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* over 2 million: {{cite web|url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/49913b5f2c.html|title=Pakistan: The situation of Ahmadis, including legal status and political, education and employment rights; societal attitudes toward Ahmadis (2006 - Nov. 2008)|date=2008-12-04|author=Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada|accessdate=2012-06-28}} |
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Somewhere between 0.22% (official figure) and 2.2% (highest estimate) of Pakistan's population follow the [[Ahmadi]] sect,{{notetag|The 1998 Pakistani census states that there are 291,000 (0.22%) Ahmadis in Pakistan. However, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has boycotted the census since 1974 which renders official Pakistani figures to be inaccurate. Independent groups have estimated the Pakistani Ahmadiyya population to be somewhere between 2 million and 5 million Ahmadis. However, the 4 million figure is the most quoted figure and is approximately 2.2% of the country. See: |
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* 3 million: International Federation for Human Rights: ''International Fact-Finding Mission. Freedoms of Expression, of Association and of Assembly in Pakistan.'' Ausgabe 408/2, Januar 2005, S. 61 ([http://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/pk408a-2.pdf PDF]) |
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* over 2 million: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/49913b5f2c.html|title=Pakistan: The situation of Ahmadis, including legal status and political, education and employment rights; societal attitudes toward Ahmadis (2006 – Nov. 2008)|date=2008-12-04|author=Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |agency=Refworld|access-date=2012-06-28}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.refworld.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/rwmain?page=country&category=&publisher=IRBC&type=QUERYRESPONSE&coi=PAK&rid=&docid=45f1478f20&skip=0|title=Pakistan: Situation of members of the Lahori Ahmadiyya Movement in Pakistan|access-date=30 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502002142/http://www.refworld.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/rwmain?page=country&category=&publisher=IRBC&type=QUERYRESPONSE&coi=PAK&rid=&docid=45f1478f20&skip=0|archive-date=2 May 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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* 3–4 million: Commission on International Religious Freedom: ''Annual Report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.'' 2005, S. 130 |
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* 3 million: International Federation for Human Rights:<ref>International Federation for Human Rights: ''International Fact-Finding Mission. Freedoms of Expression, of Association and of Assembly in Pakistan.'' Ausgabe 408/2, Januar 2005, S. 61 ([http://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/pk408a-2.pdf PDF]{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921063447/https://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/pk408a-2.pdf |date=21 September 2016 }})</ref> |
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* 4.910.000: James Minahan: Encyclopedia of the stateless nations. Ethnic and national groups around the world. Greenwood Press . Westport 2002, page 52 |
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* 3–4 million: Commission on International Religious Freedom:<ref>Commission on International Religious Freedom:''Annual Report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.'' 2005, S. 130</ref> |
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* {{cite web|url=http://www.refworld.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/rwmain?page=country&category=&publisher=IRBC&type=QUERYRESPONSE&coi=PAK&rid=&docid=45f1478f20&skip=0|title=Pakistan: Situation of members of the Lahori Ahmadiyya Movement in Pakistan|accessdate=30 April 2014}}</ref> of the population are [[Ahmadiyya in Pakistan|Ahmadi Muslims]], who were designated 'non-Muslims' by a 1974 constitutional amendment, although they consider themselves Muslims, due to pressure from Sunni extremist groups.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm|title=International Religious Freedom Report 2008: Pakistan|publisher=[[United States Department of State|US State Department]]|accessdate=24 June 2010}}</ref> |
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* 4.910.000: James Minahan: Encyclopedia of the stateless nations.<ref>James Minahan: Encyclopedia of the stateless nations. Ethnic and national groups around the world. Greenwood Press . Westport 2002, page 52</ref>}} |
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who, though they consider themselves Muslims, were officially designated 'non-Muslims' by a 1974 constitutional amendment, due to pressure from Sunni revivalist and extremist groups.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm|title=International Religious Freedom Report 2008: Pakistan|date=19 September 2008|publisher=[[United States Department of State|US State Department]]|access-date=24 June 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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====Zikris==== |
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;Other groups |
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{{main|Zikri}} |
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[[Hinduism in Pakistan|Hinduism]] is the second largest religion in Pakistan after Islam, according to the 1998 Census.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/other/yearbook2011/Population/16-16.pdf|title=Population Distribution by Religion, 1998 Census|last=|first=|date=|website=Pakistan Bureau of Statistics|publisher=|access-date=26 December 2016}}</ref> Non-Muslim religions also include [[Christianity in Pakistan|Christianity]], which has 2,800,000 (1.6%) adherents as of 2005.<ref name="congress">{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|title=Country Profile: Pakistan|year=2005|publisher=Library of Congress|pages=2, 3, 6, 8|format=PDF|accessdate=28 December 2011}}</ref> The [[Bahá'í Faith in Pakistan|Bahá'í Faith]] claims 30,000, followed by [[Sikhism in Pakistan|Sikhs]], [[Buddhism in Pakistan|Buddhists]] and [[Parsi]]s, each claiming 20,000 adherents,<ref name="State">{{Cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm|title=Pakistan – International Religious Freedom Report 2008|quote=''The majority of Muslims in the country are Sunni, with a Shi'a minority ranging between 20 to 25 percent.''|work=[[United States Department of State]]|accessdate=28 August 2010}}</ref> and a very small community of [[Jainism in Pakistan|Jains]]. |
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Like Ahmadis, and unlike orthodox Muslims, Zikris believe the [[Mahdi]] of Islam has already [[List of Mahdi claimants|arrived]]. Zikris, an Islamic sect of less than one million, originally from the sparsely populated and poor region of [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]] in western [[Pakistan]], have been described as "a minority Muslim group",<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Khan |first=Badal |chapter=Zikri Dilemmas: Origins, Religious practices, and political constraints |url=https://www.academia.edu/9220030 |title= The Baloch and Others: Linguistic, Historical and Socio-Political Perspectives on Pluralism in Balochistan |date=2008 |editor1-first= Carina |editor1-last=Jahani |editor2-first=Agnes |editor2-last=Korn |editor3-first=Paul |editor3-last=Titus |pages=293–326 |language=en}}</ref> but also a "Muslim offshoot sect",<ref> |
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*Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1997. 1998. US Department of State. [Accessed 6 Dec. 1999]; |
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*Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND), Home Office, UK. March 1999. Version 3. Pakistan: Country Assessment. 29; |
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*UNHCR. May 1998. Background Paper on Refugees and Asylum Seekers from Pakistan, 21, (all quoted in {{cite web |title=Pakistan: The Zikri faith, including its origins, the tenets, number of adherents, whether its adherents are easily distinguishable from non-adherents, and the treatment of adherents by the authorities and Muslim extremist groups (1984 to present) |url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad738.html |website=Ref World |publisher=Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |access-date=8 August 2023 |date=16 December 1999}})</ref> or a "semi-Muslim".<ref>Ethnologue. 1996. 13th edition. Edited by Barbara F. Grimes. [Accessed 16 Dec. 1999], quoted in {{cite web |title=Pakistan: The Zikri faith, including its origins, the tenets, number of adherents, whether its adherents are easily distinguishable from non-adherents, and the treatment of adherents by the authorities and Muslim extremist groups (1984 to present) |url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad738.html |website=Ref World |publisher=Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |access-date=8 August 2023 |date=16 December 1999}}</ref> Like orthodox Muslims, Zikri revere the Quran, but unlike them they believe the [[Mahdi]] has already arrived<ref name=Khan-Dilema-2008-297>Khan, "Zikri Dilemmas" (2008), p.297</ref> and do not follow the same ritual prayer practices.<ref name=Khan-Dilema-2008-300-6>Khan, "Zikri Dilemmas" (2008), p.300-306</ref> |
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===Non-Muslim groups=== |
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==Shias== |
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[[Hinduism in Pakistan|Hinduism]] is the second largest religion in Pakistan after Islam, according to the 1998 census.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/other/yearbook2011/Population/16-16.pdf|title=Population Distribution by Religion, 1998 Census|website=Pakistan Bureau of Statistics|access-date=26 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161226023307/http://www.pbs.gov.pk/sites/default/files/other/yearbook2011/Population/16-16.pdf|archive-date=26 December 2016|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Non-Muslim religions also include [[Christianity in Pakistan|Christianity]], which has 2,800,000 (1.6%) adherents as of 2005.<ref name="Congress">{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|title=Country Profile: Pakistan|year=2005|publisher=Library of Congress|pages=2, 3, 6, 8|access-date=28 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050717171649/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Pakistan.pdf|archive-date=17 July 2005|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The [[Bahá'í Faith in Pakistan|Bahá'í Faith]] claims 30,000, followed by [[Sikhism in Pakistan|Sikhs]], [[Buddhism in Pakistan|Buddhists]] and [[Parsi]]s, each claiming 20,000 adherents,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108505.htm|title=Pakistan – International Religious Freedom Report 2008|quote=''The majority of Muslims in the country are Sunni, with a Shi'a minority ranging between 20 to 25 percent.''|work=[[United States Department of State]]|date=19 September 2008|access-date=28 August 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and a very small community of [[Jainism in Pakistan|Jains]].<ref name="/minorityrights.org">{{cite web |title=Pakistan. Main minorities and indigenous peoples |url=https://minorityrights.org/country/pakistan/#:~:text=Christians%2C%20Hindus%2C%20Ahmadis%2C%20Scheduled,Ahmadis%20are%20now%20not%20recognized. |website=World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples | date=19 June 2015 |access-date=9 August 2023}}</ref> |
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[[Shias]] allege discrimination by the Pakistani government since 1948, claiming that [[Sunni Islam|Sunnis]] are given preference in business, official positions and administration of justice.<ref name=":22">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O7GPWbu8XKgC&pg=PT24&dq=gilgit+shias+1988+killing&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjgzNmygZzRAhWKkpQKHeKqCgYQ6AEIRTAI#v=onepage&q=gilgit%20shias%201988%20killing&f=false|title=Around Rakaposhi|last=Jones|first=Brian H.|publisher=Brian H Jones|year=2010|isbn=9780980810721|location=|pages=|quote=Many Shias in the region feel that they have been discriminated against since 1948. They claim that the Pakistani government continually gives preferences to Sunnis in business, in official positions, and in the administration of justice...The situation deteriorated sharply during the 1980s under the presidency of the tyrannical Zia-ul Haq when there were many attacks on the Shia population.|via=}}</ref> |
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==History and general causes== |
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===Zia-ul-Haq=== |
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===Causes=== |
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On 5 July 1977, [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq|General Zia-ul-Haq]] led a [[coup d'état]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PJBpAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA196&dq=1973+constitution+pakistan+islam&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjovf71oPDQAhXCn5QKHRBoDGIQ6AEINTAF#v=onepage&q=1973%20constitution%20pakistan%20islam&f=false|title=Constitutionalism in Islamic Countries: Between Upheaval and Continuity|last=Grote|first=Rainer|last2=|first2=|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2012|isbn=9780199910168|location=|pages=196|quote=|via=}}</ref> In the year or two before [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq|Zia-ul-Haq]]'s coup, his predecessor, leftist Prime Minister [[Zulfikar Ali Bhutto]], had faced vigorous opposition which was united under the revivalist banner of ''Nizam-e-Mustafa''<ref name="nasr-45">{{cite book|title=Mawdudi and the Making of Islamic Revivalism|date=1996|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0195096959|location=New York, Oxford|pages=45–6|last1=Nasr|first1=Seyyed Vali Reza Nasr}}</ref> ("Rule of the [[Muhammad|prophet]]"). According to supporters of the movement, establishing an Islamic state based on ''[[sharia]]'' law would mean a return to the justice and success of the early days of Islam when the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]] ruled the Muslims.<ref name="Kepel-1002">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OLvTNk75hUoC&pg=PA100&dq=Nizam-e-Mustafa+sharia&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VMqBVLDYCsSoyAS8yYKYBw&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=Nizam-e-Mustafa%20sharia&f=false|title=Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam|date=2002|publisher=I.B.Tauris|edition=2006|pages=100–101|last1=Kepel|first1=Gilles|accessdate=5 December 2014}}</ref> In an effort to stem the tide of street Islamisation, Bhutto had also called for it and banned the drinking and selling of wine by Muslims, nightclubs and horse racing.<ref name="Kepel-1002" /><ref name="World Scientific2">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9cCtsWb9hoYC&pg=PA202&dq=zia+ul+haq&hl=en&ei=y1vDTv2NE4aSiALKppTYCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=10&ved=0CGkQ6wEwCQ#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq&f=false|title=State and Secularism: Perspectives from Asia§General Zia-ul-Haq and Patronage of Islamism|last=Michael Heng Siam-Heng, Ten Chin Liew|publisher=World Scientific|year=2010|isbn=9789814282383|location=Singapore|page=360}}</ref> |
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Some of the general reasons offered for sectarian violence in Pakistan, include |
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*Socio-economic causes of general instability: |
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** socio-economic pressure from having one of the world's highest birthrates, but a scarcity of both water and energy supplies;<ref name="Mahadevan-2017"/> |
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** a multitude of ethnolinguistic groups – "Pashtun, Baloch, Punjabi, Sindhi, Seraiki and Muhajir" – with disputes over the sharing of scarce resources, leading to increased ethnic/regional tensions as "groups began to assert their cultural and nationalist agendas",<ref name="SATP-Backgrounder">{{cite web |title=Pakistan: Backgrounder |url=https://www.satp.org/backgrounder/pakistan |website=South Asian Terrorism Portal (SATP) |access-date=26 July 2023}}</ref> (an example being the concentration of power and resources in the northeastern part of the country and domination of the military by Punjabis and Pashtuns, while the poor but energy-rich southwestern Baluchistan province has a strong separatist movement).<ref name="Mahadevan-2017">{{cite journal |last1=Mahadevan |first1=Prem |title=Sectarianism in Pakistan |journal=CSS Analysis in Security Policy |date=March 2017 |issue=205 |url=https://css.ethz.ch/content/dam/ethz/special-interest/gess/cis/center-for-securities-studies/pdfs/CSSAnalyse205-EN.pdf |access-date=28 July 2023}}</ref> which spilled over into religious disputes (it's been suggested, for example, that "a religious or sect-based conflict" is a way of keeping the Balochis politically divided).<ref name=dawn-attack>{{cite news |title=Zikris under attack in Balochistan |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1154575 |access-date=9 August 2023 |agency=Dawn |date=2 January 2015}}</ref> |
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* A crisis of "legitimisation" among successive governments brought on by their failure to achieve "stated developmental agendas" or significant economic growth, making governments "more dependent on Islam as a binding force for society and polity". This was particularly extreme in the case with General [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq]],<ref name="ICG-2005" /> who failed to restore democracy as promised after overthrowing and executing an elected prime minister.<ref name="SATP-Backgrounder"/> |
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** General Zia's Islamisation policies from 1977 to 1988 where, he attempted to "gain legitimacy" and create an "Islamic polity and society", were based not on some consensus of Pakistani Muslims interpretation of Islam, or even the most popular Sunni school ([[Barelvi]]), but on a "more codified and strict" form of Islam from Saudi Arabia ([[Wahhabism|Wahhabi Islam]]).<ref name="SATP-Backgrounder"/> Zia's Islamic penal code and the "Islamic" textbooks in state schools and colleges were "derived entirely" from one set of sources, the orthodox "classical Sunni-[[Hanafi]]" school.<ref name="ICG-2005" /> "Minor theological debates and cultural differences" among Pakistanis metastasized into "unbridgeable, volatile sectarian divisions".<ref name="ICG-2005" /> |
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::During his rule, hardline Sunni religious groups, from which he gained support, were strengthened,<ref name="BBC-evolving-2011">{{cite news |title=Pakistan's evolving sectarian schism |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-12278919 |access-date=2 August 2023 |agency=BBC News |date=4 October 2011}}</ref> and "sunk their roots in Pakistan".<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |chapter=Executive Summary |page=i|url=https://www.crisisgroup.org/sites/default/files/2022-09/327%20Pakistan%20-%20Sectarian%20Violence%20-%20Print.pdf |publisher=International Crisis Group |access-date=26 July 2023 |date=5 September 2022}}</ref> The new strict Islamic orthodoxy of these hardline Sunnis strongly disapproved of the shrine pilgrimage practices that were part of practice of the majority Pakistani [[Barelvi]] sect, of the [[Ashura]] processions (and other doctrines) of the Shia, and especially of beliefs of the tiny [[Ahmadiyya]] sect. |
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[[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq|Zia-ul-Haq]] committed himself to establishing an Islamic state and enforcing ''[[sharia]]'' law.<ref name="Kepel-1002" /> Zia established separate Shariat judicial courts<ref name=":9">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WG-pAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA196&dq=1973+constitution+pakistan+islam&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjovf71oPDQAhXCn5QKHRBoDGIQ6AEIPDAG#v=onepage&q=1973%20constitution%20pakistan%20islam&f=false|title=Islam, Law and Identity|last=Diamantides|first=Marinos|last2=Gearey|first2=Adam|publisher=Routledge|year=2011|isbn=9781136675652|location=|pages=198|quote=|via=}}</ref> and court benches<ref name="HRWdouble-19">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mIUwZ4aVM8AC&pg=PA17&lpg=PA17&dq=%22International+Commission+of+Jurists%22+pakistan+Zia-ul-Haq&source=bl&ots=UBeHV1Feae&sig=ihPx0FKXz-LRRbJRdLQy0A34we4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lK5_VNL_CoO0yASoq4HYCQ&ved=0CDUQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22International%20Commission%20of%20Jurists%22%20pakistan%20Zia-ul-Haq&f=false|title=Double Jeopardy: Police Abuse of Women in Pakistan|date=1992|publisher=Human Rights Watch|page=19|accessdate=3 December 2014}}</ref><ref name="United Book Press">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nYppZ_dEjdIC&pg=PA132&dq=zia+ul+haq&hl=en&ei=y1vDTv2NE4aSiALKppTYCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=2&ved=0CEAQ6wEwAQ#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq&f=false|title=Pakistan: between mosque and military|last=Haqqani|first=Hussain|publisher=United Book Press|year=2005|isbn=9780870032851|location=Washington D.C.|page=400}}</ref> to judge legal cases using Islamic doctrine.<ref name="wynbr-2009">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xQGwgJnCPZgC&pg=PA216&dq=%22a+brief+history+of+pakistan%22+zia+bolster+ulama&hl=en&sa=X&ei=-hV5VN7mDOHIsQSSiYCoAQ&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22a%20brief%20history%20of%20pakistan%22%20zia%20bolster%20ulama&f=false|title=A Brief History of Pakistan|date=2009|publisher=Facts on File|isbn=9780816061846|pages=216–7|last1=Wynbrandt|first1=James}}</ref> New criminal offences (of adultery, fornication, and types of blasphemy), and new punishments (of whipping, amputation, and stoning to death), were added to Pakistani law. [[Riba|Interest]] payments for bank accounts were replaced by "profit and loss" payments. ''[[Zakat]]'' charitable donations became a 2.5% annual tax. School textbooks and libraries were overhauled to remove un-Islamic material.<ref name="jones-16-7">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ONZpltd6UZ8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=zia+giving+him+a+free+hand+to+ignore+internationally+accepted+human+rights+norms&hl=en&sa=X&ei=qIVvVJbMBM_hoASD14CQAw&ved=0CB0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=Pakistan : eye of the storm|date=2002|publisher=Yale University Press|location=New Haven and London|pages=16–7|last1=Jones|first1=Owen Bennett}}</ref> Offices, schools, and factories were required to offer praying space.<ref name="Paracha-2009">{{cite web|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/812995/pious-follies|title=Pious follies|date=3 September 2009|website=Dawn.com|last1=Paracha|first1=Nadeem F.|accessdate=20 December 2014}}</ref> Zia bolstered the influence of the ''[[ulama]]'' (Islamic clergy) and the Islamic parties,<ref name="wynbr-2009" /> whilst conservative scholars became fixtures on television.<ref name="Paracha-2009" /> 10,000s of activists from the [[Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan|Jamaat-e-Islami]] party were appointed to government posts to ensure the continuation of his agenda after his passing.<ref name="Kepel-1002" /><ref name="wynbr-2009" /><ref name="jones-16">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t8iYEgPYG_EC&pg=PA17&lpg=PA17&dq=Tens+of+thousands+of+Jamaat+activists+and+sympathisers&source=bl&ots=0znj0JNV-d&sig=k2q58eXd587bOoZtty4oMFE6ZO4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=cp9vVMjQBMecgwTV0oDgBA&ved=0CCAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Tens%20of%20thousands%20of%20Jamaat%20activists%20and%20sympathisers&f=false|title=Pakistan : eye of the storm|date=2002|publisher=Yale University Press|location=New Haven and London|pages=16–7|quote=... Zia rewarded the only political party to offer him consistent support, Jamaat-e-Islami. Tens of thousands of Jamaat activists and sympathisers were given jobs in the judiciary, the civil service and other state institutions. These appointments meant Zia's Islamic agenda lived on long after he died.|last1=Jones|first1=Owen Bennett}}</ref><ref name="nasr-95">{{cite book|url=http://www.chicagobooth.edu/~/media/E49831A1165C49EBA902C83648F0CE36.pdf|title=ISLAMIZATION AND THE PAKISTANI ECONOMY|date=2004|publisher=Woodrow Wilson International Center or Scholars|page=95|chapter=Islamization, the State and Development|quote=General Zia became the patron of Islamization in Pakistan and for the first time in the country's history, opened the bureaucracy, the military, and various state institutions to Islamic parties|last1=Nasr|first1=Vali|editor2-last=Lee|editor2-first=Wilson|editor1-last=Hathaway|editor1-first=Robert|accessdate=30 January 2015}}</ref> Conservative ''[[ulama]]'' (Islamic scholars) were added to the [[Council of Islamic Ideology]].<ref name="HRWdouble-19" /> Separate electorates for [[Hinduism in Pakistan|Hindus]] and [[Christianity in Pakistan|Christians]] were established in 1985 even though Christian and Hindu leaders complained that they felt excluded from the county's political process.<ref name="OBJ-312">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ONZpltd6UZ8C&pg=PA31&lpg=PA31&dq=separate+electorates+for+minorities+in+pakistan&source=bl&ots=EvDJ2iJhtR&sig=O8KTsCMNPSx9Ze8Q6TggED2GsIQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VauHVK33E8H2yQTG8IGQAQ&ved=0CDcQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=separate%20electorates%20for%20minorities%20in%20pakistan&f=false|title=Pakistan: Eye of the Storm|date=2002|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=0300101473|page=31|last1=Jones|first1=Owen Bennett|accessdate=9 December 2014}}</ref> |
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*Other causes are Pakistan's involvement in the Jihad against Soviets and their allied Marxists in Afghanistan (1979 to 1989) which led to |
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**The easy and abundant availability of weapons imported to fight the Marxist Afghan government and Soviets;<ref name="SATP-Backgrounder"/> Billions of dollars of US arms and Saudi funds poured into the jihad in Afghanistan and the availability of money, arms and trained fighters overflowing from the jihad in Afghanistan.<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide"/> |
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:{{blockquote|Central and southern Punjab, served as a base for ‘mujahideen’ recruits. Most of these ‘mujahideen’ returned to Pakistan after the Russian forces pulled out in the late 1980s, and brought with them a sizeable supply of arms, ammunition and a proclivity for violence. They joined the extremist sectarian outfits and since then, sectarian rivalry was largely expressed through extreme violence.<ref name="IfCM-SATP">{{cite web |title=Terrorist Group of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Jaferia Pakistan |url=https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/tjp.htm |website=South Asian Terrorism Portal |publisher=Institute for Conflict Management |access-date=25 July 2023 |date=2001}}</ref>}} |
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**One of the outlets for mujahideen after the Soviet forces began to leave Afghanistan (May 1988-February 1989) was Kashmir, where a wave of civil disobedience and protests by the Muslim majority in Kashmir was erupting just as the Soviet forces were leaving Afghanistan (May 1988-February 1989).<ref>J. R. Schmidt, "[https://archive.org/details/unravelingpakist0000schm <!-- quote=kashmir protests. --> The Unraveling: Pakistan in the Age of Jihad]", ch. 4, Macmillan, (2012).</ref> Committed to help Muslims (which Pakistan believed should have been part of Pakistan to begin with), Pakistan sent in the Jihadis that had trained for Afghan Jihad. <!-- The followers of [[Syed Ahmad Barelvi]]'s puritanical form of Islam were trained at [[Balakot]], the place where he was killed while fleeing the joint Sikh-Pashtun attack in 1831.--> New organisations, like [[Hizbul Mujahideen]], were set up, their members were drawn from the ideological spheres of Deobandi seminaries and Jamaat-e-islami.<ref name="Khaled Ahmad pp. 133">Khaled Ahmad, "Sectarian War", pp. 133 – 135, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> |
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**The establishment of "a powerful network of militant madarssas", that "combined weapons training with a fundamentalist and violent interpretation of Islam". These were originally set up to train volunteer 'students' - Taliban - for the war in Afghanistan. Now that the Taliban in Afghanistan are victorious, a substantial numbers of these 'students' (as well as their motivators and mentors) are free to turn "their attention to other areas of conflict, including Pakistan itself".<ref name="SATP-Backgrounder"/> and provide sectarian groups with "an endless stream of recruits".<ref name="ICG-2005" /> Zia's "goals subsequently coalesced with the national security goal of building close linkages with the Afghan Mujahideen after the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979".<ref name="SATP-Backgrounder"/> |
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*Institutions that in theory should keep violence and sectarian in check have been hamstrung.<ref name="ICG-2005" /> |
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**judiciary lack independence, |
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**police were subject to political interference and "inefficient" and "incapable".<ref name="ICG-2005" /> |
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**"moderate, secular and democratic" political forces were deprived of "an even playing field".<ref name="ICG-2005" /> |
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*[[International Crisis Group]] credits continued violence to naive attempts to manipulate and/or co-opt sects. |
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**After the [[9/11 terror attacks]], "foreign donors" hoped to "counter Deobandi militants" such as the Taliban, by strengthening what they believed to be peace-loving rival Barelvi and Sufi sects, as an "antidote" to hard-line, anti-Shia, anti-Western Deobandi and Wahhabi Sunni sects.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-8-9">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |pages=8–9 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 }}</ref> Barelvis and Barelvi leaders had been victims of sectarian violence, but that did not stop the Barelvi groups [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan|Labaik]] and [[Sunni Ittehad Council]] from inciting and using violence as they became more powerful. This included supporting the [[Salman Taseer#Assassination|assassination of Punjab governor Salman Taseer]] by his police bodyguard (a Barelvi) for Taseer's criticism of blasphemy laws and efforts to obtain a [[Asia Bibi blasphemy case|pardon for a woman sentenced to death for blasphemy]].<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-8-9"/> |
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**Allowing sectarian groups to contest elections and thereby change their direction away from killing people, towards pleasing constituents and getting reelected, appears to "embolden rather than moderate them". In particular, the [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan|Labaik]] group was allowed by the [[Election Commission of Pakistan]] to contest the July 2018 national elections, despite its espousing a hardline sectarianism and acts of inciting violence. During the campaign, a Labaik youth leader shot and wounded Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, an act defended by the head of [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan|Labaik]]. The group also threatened Supreme Court judges with a "horrible end" if they overruled [[Asia Bibi blasphemy case|a blasphemy death sentence being appealed]], and declared army chief [[Qamar Javed Bajwa]] a non-Muslim, calling for mutiny against him.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-10-11">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |pages=10–11 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 }}</ref> |
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===History=== |
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Zia's state sponsored Islamization increased sectarian divisions in Pakistan between [[Sunnis]] and [[Shias]] (due to Zia's anti-Shia policies)<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Mx5DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA346&dq=zia+ul+haq+anti-shia+policies&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwip1bS7_KTRAhXCmJQKHTuwD1gQ6AEIGzAA#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq%20anti-shia%20policies&f=false|title=Faith-Based Violence and Deobandi Militancy in Pakistan|last=|first=|publisher=Springer|year=2016|isbn=9781349949663|location=|pages=346|quote=The grave impact of that legacy was compunded by the Iranian Revolution, and Zia-ul Haq's anti-Shia policies, which added the violence and regimentation of the organization.|via=}}</ref> and also between [[Deobandis]] and [[Barelvis]].<ref name="talbot-251-islamization">{{cite book|title=Pakistan, a Modern History|date=1998|publisher=St.Martin's Press|location=NY|page=251|quote=The state sponsored process of Islamisation dramatically increased sectarian divisions not only between [[Sunni]]s and [[Shia]] over the issue of the 1979 ''Zakat'' Ordinance, but also between [[Deobandi]]s and [[Barelvi]]s.|last1=Talbot|first1=Ian}}</ref> A solid majority of [[Barelvis]] had supported the creation of Pakistan,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nzivCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA167&dq=barelvi+ulema+pakistan+movement&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwju2M3j7v7QAhXBG5QKHfMyBNIQ6AEIJTAC#v=onepage&q=barelvi%20ulema%20pakistan%20movement&f=false|title=State and Nation-Building in Pakistan: Beyond Islam and Security|last=Long|first=Roger D.|last2=Singh|first2=Gurharpal|last3=Samad|first3=Yunas|last4=Talbot|first4=Ian|publisher=Routledge|year=2015|isbn=9781317448204|location=|pages=167|quote=In the 1940s a solid majority of the Barelvis were supporters of the Pakistan Movement and played a supporting role in its final phase (1940-7), mostly under the banner of the All-India Sunni Conference which had been founded in 1925.|via=}}</ref> and [[Barelvi]] [[ulama]] had also issued fatwas in support of the [[Pakistan Movement]] during the 1946 elections,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WgFeAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA135&dq=Barelvi+ulema+pakistan+movement&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjsyqKd6I7RAhUBmJQKHc-zCRAQ6AEIHDAA#v=onepage&q=Barelvi%20ulema%20pakistan%20movement&f=false|title=The Awakening of Muslim Democracy: Religion, Modernity, and the State|last=Cesari|first=Jocelyne|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2014|isbn=9781107513297|location=|pages=135|quote=For example, the Barelvi ulama supported the formation of the state of Pakistan and thought that any alliance with Hindus (such as that between the Indian National Congress and the Jamiat ulama-I-Hind [JUH]) was counterproductive.|via=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XfI-hEI8a9wC&pg=PA87&dq=Barelvi+ulama+1946+elections&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjooZvo547RAhWDHpQKHe2zAC8Q6AEIGTAA#v=onepage&q=Barelvi%20ulama%201946%20elections&f=false|title=Pakistan: The Struggle Within|last=John|first=Wilson|publisher=Pearson Education India|year=2009|isbn=9788131725047|location=|pages=87|quote=During the 1946 election, Barelvi Ulama issued fatwas in favour of the Muslim League.|via=}}</ref> but ironically Islamic state politics in Pakistan was mostly in favour of [[Deobandi]] (and later Ahl-e-Hadith/[[Salafi]]) institutions.<ref name=":10">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Mx5DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA379&dq=barelvi+ulema+pakistan+movement&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwju2M3j7v7QAhXBG5QKHfMyBNIQ6AEIKjAD#v=onepage&q=barelvi%20ulema%20pakistan%20movement&f=false|title=Faith-Based Violence and Deobandi Militancy in Pakistan|last=Syed|first=Jawad|last2=Pio|first2=Edwina|last3=Kamran|first3=Tahir|last4=Zaidi|first4=Abbas|publisher=Springer|year=2016|isbn=9781349949663|location=|pages=379|quote=Ironically, Islamic state politics in Pakistan was mostly in favour of Deobandi, and more recently Ahl-e Hadith/Salafi, institutions. Only a few Deobandi clerics decided to support the Pakistan Movement, but they were highly influential.|via=}}</ref> This was despite the fact that only a few (although influential) [[Deobandi]] clerics had supported the [[Pakistan Movement]].<ref name=":10" /> [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq|Zia-ul-Haq]] forged a strong alliance between the [[Pakistan army|military]] and [[Deobandi]] institutions.<ref name=":10" /> |
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As mentioned above, Islamisation policies of General Zia (from 1977 to 1988) strengthened a strict form of Sunni Islam in Pakistan. |
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Pakistan aided the Afghan resistance movement (especially starting in the mid-1980s) with weapons through the [[Pakistani intelligence services]], in a program called [[Operation Cyclone]].<ref name=1986-1992-CIA-AND-BRITISH-RECRUIT-AND-TRAIN-MILITANTS-WORLDWIDE-TO-HELP-FIGHT-AFGHAN-WAR>{{cite web|title=1986–1992: CIA and British Recruit and Train Militants Worldwide to Help Fight Afghan War|url=http://www.historycommons.org/context.jsp?item=a86operationcyclone|publisher=History Commons|access-date=9 January 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080912195929/http://www.historycommons.org/context.jsp?item=a86operationcyclone|archive-date=12 September 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> After the Soviets withdrew in 1989, the weapons (particularly Kalashnikov assault rifles) did not disappear but were often smuggled into Pakistan by Afghan soldiers in need of money.{{notetag|"Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has complained that her country got stuck with its gun problem as a direct result of cooperation with the United States in forcing Soviet troops from Afghanistan. 'We are left on our own to cope with the remnants of the Afghan war, which include arms smuggling . . . drugs and . . . {religious} zealots who were leaders at the time of the Afghan war,'" <ref name="Cooper-1996">{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Kenneth J. |title=A KALASHNIKOV CULTURE' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1996/03/14/a-kalashnikov-culture/3e32ca0c-7f5d-418b-8280-c581d9bbb384/ |access-date=29 August 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=4 March 1996}}</ref>}} |
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In the 1980s and 1990s, the problem of violence was worst was in [[Karachi]] and in the province of [[Sindh]].<ref name="BBC-evolving-2011"/> |
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=== Initial Violence === |
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In the 1990s, [[Kashmir_conflict#Rise_of_the_separatist_movement_and_Islamism_(1984–1986)|the insurgency in Indian-administered Kashmir]] sponsored by the Pakistan military, allowed groups such as the SSP and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi to "consolidate".<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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Attacks on Shias increased under the presidency of [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq|Zia-ul-Haq]],<ref name=":22" /> with the first major sectarian riots in Pakistan breaking out in 1983 in [[Karachi]] and later spreading to [[Lahore]] and [[Balochistan]].<ref name=":7">{{Cite news|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1987-11-10/news/8703240490_1_shiites-sunni-karachi/2|title=Sectarian Strife Threatens Pakistan`s Fragile Society|last=Broder|first=Jonathan|date=10 November 1987|work=Chicago Tribune|quote=Pakistan`s first major Shiite-Sunni riots erupted in 1983 in Karachi during the Shiite holiday of Muharram; at least 60 people were killed. More Muharram disturbances followed over the next three years, spreading to Lahore and the Baluchistan region and leaving hundreds more dead. Last July, Sunnis and Shiites, many of them armed with locally made automatic weapons, clashed in the northwestern town of Parachinar, where at least 200 died.|access-date=31 December 2016|via=}}</ref> Sectarian violence became a recurring feature of the [[Muharram]] month every year, with sectarian violence between [[Sunnis]] and [[Shias]] taking place in 1986 in [[Parachinar]].<ref name=":7" /> In one notorious incident, the [[1988 Gilgit Massacre]], [[Osama bin Laden]]-led [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] tribals assaulted, massacred and raped [[Shias|Shia]] civilians in [[Gilgit District|Gilgit]] after being inducted by the [[Pakistan Army]] to quell a [[Shias|Shia]] uprising in [[Gilgit District|Gilgit]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O7GPWbu8XKgC&pg=PT24&dq=gilgit+shias+1988+killing&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjgzNmygZzRAhWKkpQKHeKqCgYQ6AEIRTAI#v=onepage&q=gilgit%20shias%201988%20killing&f=false|title=Around Rakaposhi|last=Jones|first=Brian H.|publisher=Brian H Jones|year=2010|isbn=9780980810721|location=|pages=|quote=Many Shias in the region feel that they have been discriminated against since 1948. They claim that the Pakistani government continually gives preferences to Sunnis in business, in official positions, and in the administration of justice...The situation deteriorated sharply during the 1980s under the presidency of the tyrannical Zia-ul Haq when there were many attacks on the Shia population. In one of the most notorious incidents, during May 1988 Sunni assailants destroyed Shia villages, forcing thousands of people to flee to Gilgit for refuge. Shia mosques were razed and about 100 people were killed|via=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/2003/feb/26raman.htm|title=The Karachi Attack: The Kashmir Link|last=Raman|first=B|date=26 February 2003|work=Rediiff News|quote=A revolt by the Shias of Gilgit was ruthlessly suppressed by the Zia-ul Haq regime in 1988, killing hundreds of Shias. An armed group of tribals from Afghanistan and the North-West Frontier Province, led by Osama bin Laden, was inducted by the Pakistan Army into Gilgit and adjoining areas to suppress the revolt.|access-date=31 December 2016|via=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://herald.dawn.com/news/1153556|title=This Muharram, Gilgit gives peace a chance|last=Taimur|first=Shamil|date=12 October 2016|work=Herald|quote=This led to violent clashes between the two sects. In 1988, after a brief calm of nearly four days, the military regime allegedly used certain militants along with local Sunnis to ‘teach a lesson’ to Shias, which led to hundreds of Shias and Sunnis being killed.|access-date=31 December 2016|via=}}</ref><ref name=":16">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PYquDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA37&dq=gilgit+shias+osama+bin+laden&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjBv5zhhJ7RAhVCI5QKHT5ED6cQ6AEIIzAC#v=onepage&q=gilgit%20shias%20osama%20bin%20laden&f=false|title=International Organizations and The Rise of ISIL: Global Responses to Human Security Threats|last=|first=|publisher=Routledge|year=2016|isbn=9781315536088|editor-last=|editor-first=|location=|pages=37–38|quote=Several hundred Shiite civilians in Gilgit, Pakistan, were massacred in 1988 by Osama Bin Laden and his Taliban fighters (Raman, 2004).|via=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=19mPVOBZ_9YC&pg=PA134&dq=gilgit+shias+raped+1988&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiKgvjkm57RAhXLNpQKHZnoCx8Q6AEIGTAA#v=onepage&q=gilgit%20shias%20raped%201988&f=false|title=The Making of Terrorism in Pakistan: Historical and Social Roots of Extremism|last=Murphy|first=Eamon|publisher=Routledge|year=2013|isbn=9780415565264|location=|pages=134|quote=Shias in the district of Gilgit were assaulted, killed and raped by an invading Sunni lashkar-armed militia-comprising thousands of jihadis from the North West Frontier Province.|via=}}</ref> |
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Sectarian strife has evolved over the decades. From approximately 1990 to 2011 Sunni and Shia extremists from their respective groups attacked each other.<ref name="BBC-evolving-2011"/> By 2005, observers complained "administrative and legal action" had "failed to dismantle a well-entrenched and widely spread terror infrastructure". Among other techniques, when an extremist group was banned, it gave itself a new name.<ref name="ICG-2005">{{Cite web |date=2005-04-18 |title=The State of Sectarianism in Pakistan |url=https://www.crisisgroup.org/asia/south-asia/pakistan/state-sectarianism-pakistan |access-date=5 August 2023 |website=International Crisis Group}}</ref> Police action, however, decimated the leadership of at least the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi so that by the mid-2010s its sectarian attacks against the Shia declined.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> |
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===Possible outside funding=== |
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Some allege that [[Persian Gulf]] Arab states, especially [[Saudi Arabia]], are exacerbating tensions by funding radical extremist Sunnis. Wikileaks has reported that {{USD|100 million}} are gifted to extremist Wahabi preachers in Southern Punjab from outside countries such as Saudi Arabia. Southern Punjab contains active extremist Sunni groups such as LEJ and their benefactors, such as Tehrike Taliban and Al-Qaeda.<ref name="Hussain">{{Cite book|title=Frontline Pakistan: The Struggle With Militant Islam |last1=Hussain|first1=Zahid|authorlink=|volume=|edition=|year=2008|publisher=Columbia University Press|location=|isbn= 978-0-231-14225-0 |page=93|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cD36RbtSKNkC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA93#v=onepage&q&f=false|accessdate=18 September 2010}}</ref> |
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Following this period of "relative peace" a new era of sectarian conflict emerged,<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> with Sunni militants "inspired by al-Qaeda's ideology" (principally followers of the [[Islamic State – Khorasan Province|Islamic State]]) became the main instigators of violence.<ref name="BBC-evolving-2011"/> |
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Sectarian violence in Pakistan is a recent phenomenon (starting in the late 1970s and significantly growing in the mid 1980s) and that for most of the country's history, people of different sects have co-existed peacefully. The development of sectarianism is widely attributed to be a result of Arab states and other outside powers inside Pakistan having provided millions of dollars of funding to fundamentalist networks.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/173744/wikileaks-saudi-arabia-uae-funded-extremist-networks-in-pakistan/|title=Wikileaks: Saudi Arabia, UAE funded extremist networks in Pakistan|work=The Express Tribune|date=22 May 2011|accessdate=20 May 2012}}</ref> |
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Former Lashkar-e-Jhangvi rank-and-file joined Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), the Islamic State's local franchise. In 2017 the Barelvi-dominated [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan]] rose to "prominence" and "took the lead" in home grown Sunni sectarianism. (This was despite the fact Barelvi had a history of "shared ritual practice with Shias", and were "once regarded as the more moderate" Sunni sub-sect.)<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> |
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{{Quote|''A fact recognized by all in Pakistan is that the people of the country are not sectarian-minded. Before jihad took hold of Pakistan and extremist clerics became threatening, there was considerable harmony between the sects. [[Muharram]] was not the season of sectarian violence and mayhem. Today, the world understands that the intensification of the sectarian feeling among the clerics is actually a result of a war relocated from Pakistan's neighbourhood in the [[Persian Gulf|Gulf]].|[[The Express Tribune]]|2012<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/381350/battling-the-monster-of-sectarianism/|title=Battling the monster of sectarianism|work=The Express Tribune|date=20 May 2012|accessdate=20 May 2012}}</ref>}} |
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==Perpetrators and sectarian groups== |
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===2000–2010 === |
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Since the year 2000, over 2000 Shia [[Hazara people|Hazara]] community members including many women and children have been killed or wounded in attacks perpetrated by [[Al-Qaeda]] and [[Taliban]] in the southwestern town of [[Quetta]]. Many hundreds of Shia Muslims have been killed in northern areas of Pakistan, such as Gilgit, Baltistan, Parachinar and Chelas. The violence worsened immediately after 11 September 2001 and the expulsion of the Taliban from [[Afghanistan]].<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3045122.stm |title=Pakistan's ''Shia-Sunni'' divide |accessdate=24 August 2010 |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=1 June 2004}}</ref> In 2002, 12 Shia Hazara police cadets were gunned down in Quetta. In 2003, the main Shia Friday Mosque was attacked in Quetta, killing 53 worshippers. On 2 March 2004, at least 42 persons were killed and more than 100 wounded when a procession of Shia Muslims was attacked by rival Sunni extremists at Liaquat Bazaar in Quetta.<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3524851.stm |title=Carnage in Pakistan Shia attack |accessdate=24 August 2010 |publisher=BBC News |date=2 March 2004}}</ref> In 2006, sectarian violence led to 300 deaths.<ref name="CCM">{{Cite web|url= http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0202/p01s02-wosc.html |title=Shiite-Sunni conflict rises in Pakistan |accessdate=24 August 2010 |work=David Montero |date=2 February 2007}}</ref> |
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Some of the paramilitary and terrorist groups that have perpetrated of acts of sectarian violence in Pakistan include: |
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On 28 December 2009, as many as 40 Shias were killed in [[2009 Karachi bombing|an apparent suicide bombing in Karachi]]. The bomber attacked a Shia [[procession]] that was held to mark [[Ashoura|Ashura]].<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/pakistan/metropolitan/04-karachi-death-toll-rises-qs-05 |title=Karachi in grip of grief and anger as blast toll rises to 43 |accessdate=24 August 2010 |work=S. Raza Hassan |publisher=[[Dawn News]] |date=30 December 2009}}</ref> Since June 2010 in Karachi, [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan|Sipah-e-Sahaba]] is involved in the target killing of seven innocent bystanders and intellectuals; all were from the [[Twelver]] Shia Muslim community. Sectarian riots and the targeted killing of doctors in the provincial capital have drawn attention to the present democratic system. Karachi had witnessed similar sectarian tension in the early 1980s when then-President Zia-ul-Haq was in power. The military regime of those years had supported certain groups to strengthen its rule and Karachi underwent the worst situation after the sectarian riots. The Shia-Sunni clashes had started from the same section of the city, Godra Colony in New Karachi, after a small incident, and subsequently the clashes gripped the entire city. |
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*[[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] (SSP, literally, "Guardians of the Prophet's Companions", renamed ''Millat-e-Islamia'', and later ''Ahl-e Sunnat Wal Jamaat'' (ASWJ)) - an Islamist organisation that also functions as a political party. Its "foundational tenets" were urging the exclusion of Shias from government jobs; the proscription of Shia religious programs, processions and rituals; spreading fear among the Shia community and particularly among prominent Shias so that they fled the country.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> In 2011 the group issued a statement declaring all Shias ''wajib-ul-qatal'' (fit to be killed).<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> It origins have been described as Anjuman Sipah-e-Sahaba (ASS) - formed by a group of Deobandi militants to wage 'war' against the Shia landholders in Jhang;<ref name="IfCM-SATP"/> but also as having broken away from the main Deobandi Sunni organisation in the 1980s.{{NoteTag| [[Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F)]] in 1985, or from Tanzim-e-Ahlesunnat (TAS) in the 1980s<ref name="IfCM-SATP"/>}} The group was renamed SSP during the Islamisation campaign of Zia-ul-Haq, which coincided with the Iranian revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini.<ref name="IfCM-SATP"/> SSP, like LeJ, "later became part of the al-Qaeda network in Pakistan".<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, p. 166">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'' (Norton), 2006, p. 166</ref> |
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*[[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] (LeJ, literally Army of Jhangvi) — has claimed responsibility for various [[Mass-casualty incident|mass casualty attack]]s against the [[Shia Islam in Pakistan|Shia community in Pakistan]],<ref name=roul20050602>{{Cite journal |
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| last = Roul |
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| first = Animesh |
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| title = Lashkar-e-Jhangvi: Sectarian Violence in Pakistan and Ties to International Terrorism |
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| journal = Terrorism Monitor |
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| volume = 3 |
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| issue = 11 |
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| publisher = Jamestown Foundation |
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| date = 2 June 2005 |
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| url = http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2005/06/lashkar-e-jhangvi-sectarian-violence.html |
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| access-date = 24 September 2013 |
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| archive-date = 5 June 2019 |
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| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190605081957/http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2005/06/lashkar-e-jhangvi-sectarian-violence.html |
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| url-status = dead |
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}}</ref> including multiple bombings that [[January 2013 Pakistan bombings|killed over 200]] [[Hazaras|Hazara]] Shias in [[Quetta]] in 2013. It has also been linked to the [[Mominpura Graveyard]] attack in 1998, the abduction of [[Daniel Pearl]] in 2002, and the [[2009 attack on the Sri Lanka national cricket team|attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team]] in [[Lahore]] in 2009.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-quetta-bombing-idUSBRE91I0Q420130219|title=Pakistani Shi'ites call off protests after Quetta bombing arrests|date=19 February 2013 | work=Reuters}}</ref><ref name="The Diplomat">{{cite news|last1=Notezai|first1=Muhammad Akbar|title=Malik Ishaq and Pakistan's Sectarian Violence|url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/08/malik-ishaq-and-pakistans-sectarian-violence/|access-date=12 August 2015|work=The Diplomat|date=11 August 2015}}</ref> A predominantly [[Punjabi people|Punjabi]] group,<ref>{{cite news |
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| title=Pakistan Shias killed in Gilgit sectarian attack |
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| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-19280339 |
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| work=BBC News |
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| date=16 August 2012 |
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| access-date=11 December 2012 |
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| quote=A predominantly Punjabi group, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi is linked with the 2002 murder of US reporter Daniel Pearl and other militant attacks, particularly in the southern city of Karachi.}}</ref> the LeJ has been labelled by Pakistani intelligence officials as one of the country's most virulent [[terrorist organisation]]s.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/105710-iran-condemns-terrorist-attacks-in-pakistan |title=Iran condemns terrorist attacks in Pakistan |newspaper=Tehran Times |date=17 February 2013 |access-date=18 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140904022747/http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/105710-iran-condemns-terrorist-attacks-in-pakistan |archive-date= 4 September 2014 }}</ref> It was created as "ostensibly separate"<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> from the SSP when that organization sought to pursue electoral politics, but its "operatives used SSP mosques and madrasas as hideouts, and SSP networks to plot and carry out attack".<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> Lashkar-e-Jhangvi continued to attacks on Shias until the mid-2010s, when police action decimated its leadership and sectarian attacks declined.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> |
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*Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (aka [[Pakistani Taliban]], TTP) — this group attracted LeJ members to join after "horrific attacks" against Shia.<ref name="CEfIP-2021">{{cite web |last1=SAYED |first1=ABDUL |title=The Evolution and Future of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan |url=https://carnegieendowment.org/2021/12/21/evolution-and-future-of-tehrik-e-taliban-pakistan-pub-86051 |website=Carnegie Endowment |access-date=24 August 2023 |date=21 December 2021}}</ref> Under the leadership of [[Hakimullah Mehsud]], who had a long history of association with LeJ, sectarian killings in Pakistan became "more frequent". Under him, the TTP targeted "munafaqeen" (those who spread discord), which meant not only Ahmedi and Shia but Barelvis/Sufis (who make up about half the population of Pakistan). "The TTP began openly attacking Sufi shrines."<ref name="FAIR-WotR-2014">{{cite web |last1=FAIR |first1=C. CHRISTINE |title=WHO'S KILLING PAKISTAN'S SHIA AND WHY? |url=https://warontherocks.com/2014/05/whos-killing-pakistans-shia-and-why/ |website=War on the Rocks |access-date=24 August 2023 |date=20 May 2014}}</ref> Among the stated objectives of TTP is the overthrow the government of Pakistan,<ref name=abbash>{{cite journal| last = Abbas| first = Hassan| title = A Profile of Tehrik-I-Taliban Pakistan| journal = CTC Sentinel| volume = 1| issue = 2| pages = 1–4| publisher = [[Combating Terrorism Center]]| location = West Point, NY| date = January 2008| url = http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/publication/17868/profile_of_tehrikitaliban_pakistan.html| access-date = 8 November 2008| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170101073222/http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/publication/17868/profile_of_tehrikitaliban_pakistan.html| archive-date = 1 January 2017| url-status = live}}</ref><ref name="gall2009327">{{cite news| author1 =[[Carlotta Gall]] |author2=Ismail Khan |author3=[[Pir Zubair Shah]] |author4=Taimoor Shah| title =Pakistani and Afghan Taliban Unify in Face of U.S. Influx| work =[[The New York Times]]| date =26 March 2009| url =https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/world/asia/27taliban.html| access-date =27 March 2009| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20090401223858/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/world/asia/27taliban.html| archive-date =1 April 2009| url-status =live}}</ref> by waging a terrorist campaign against its armed forces and security forces.<ref name="refworld-Terrorisms 2016"/> Among other attacks it killed 150, mostly children, in the [[2014 Peshawar school massacre]].<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> The TTP depends on the [[Tribal belt (Pakistan)|tribal belt]] along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border for support and recruits, and receives ideological guidance from [[al-Qaeda]].<ref name="refworld-Terrorisms 2016">{{cite web|url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/5981e3bd26.html|title=Country Reports on Terrorisms 2016 – Foreign Terrorist Organizations Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan TTP|date=July 2017|work=Refworld|publisher=United States Department of State|access-date=28 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190428085326/https://www.refworld.org/docid/5981e3bd26.html|archive-date=28 April 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> |
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* [[Jundallah (Pakistan)|Jundallah]] — a "splinter group" of TTP, but as of 2015 aligned with [[Islamic State – Khorasan Province]] (ISKP). After one attack by the group that killed 60 Shia worshipers, its spokesperson Ahmed (Fahad) Marwat stated: "Our target was the Shi'a community mosque… they are our enemies" <ref>(Reuters, 30 January), quoted in {{cite journal |last1=Roul |first1=Animesh |title=Growing Islamic State Influence in Pakistan Fuels Sectarian Violence |url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/559d00ea4.html |access-date=8 August 2023 |publisher=Jamestown Foundation |journal=Terrorism Monitor |volume=13 |issue=13 |date=26 June 2015}}</ref> |
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* [[Islamic State – Khorasan Province]] (ISKP) – the local [[Islamic State]] branch. As of 2022, the group is primarily an urban phenomenon, seemingly composed of de-centralised units that target Shia sites, avoiding the more dangerous task of directly challenging the Pakistan state.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> Its recruits have been primarily disgruntled Deobandi militants from Lashkar-e-Jhangvi/SSP (whose leadership has been decimated),<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> or the Pakistani Taliban.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> (Unlike members in Afghanistan, its members are predominantly Deobandi rather than Salafi). It was responsible for the 4 March [[2022 Peshawar mosque attack|2022 bombing of a Shia mosque in Peshawar]] which killed more than 60.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> |
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*[[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan]] (Labbaik, for short) — a hardline political party and violent protest movement, most of whose followers are Barelvi,<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> which mobilises around perceived insults to the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]]. Starting around 2017, Labbaik has been responsible for inciting or conducting some of the worst sectarian and vigilante violence in Pakistan. In particular the 3 December 2021 [[Lynching of Priyantha Kumara|mob lynching of Priyantha Kumara]], a Sri Lankan factory manager wrongly accused of blasphemy. While Labbaik does not represent Barelvi Islam, most of its followers are Barelvi.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> Labaik has embraced an anti-Shia agenda, breaking with Barelvis’ history of shared ritual practice with Shias.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> Among other activities, the group threatened Supreme Court judges with a "horrible end" if they overruled the [[Asia Bibi blasphemy case|Asia Bibi blasphemy sentence]], called for mutiny against army chief [[Qamar Javed Bajwa]], who it declared a non-Muslim.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-10-11"/> A Labaik youth leader shot and wounded Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, during the July 2018 elections campaign, which another Labaik leader justified on the grounds that Iqbal's party (PML-N) had committed blasphemy.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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*[[Tehreek-e-Jafaria Pakistan]] (TeJP, Movement of [[Ja'fari school|Ja'fari]] (Ja'fari is the 12er Shia school of [[fiqh]]) — was a Shia political party founded in 1979 by Syed Arif Hussain Al Hussaini to protect the interests of the Shiite minority and to spread the ideas of the leader of the Iranian Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah [[Ruhollah Khomeini]].<ref name="IfCM-SATP">{{cite web |title=Terrorist Group of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Jaferia Pakistan |url=https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/tjp.htm |website=South Asian Terrorism Portal |publisher=Institute for Conflict Management |access-date=25 July 2023 |date=2001}}</ref> Its origins are in Tehreek Nifaz Fiqah-e-Jafria (TNFJ). A splinter group, the Sipah-e-Muhammad Pakistan (SMP), with a significant following in Jhang, emerged in 1994 as a prominent Shia terrorist outfit involved in anti-SSP campaigns, violence and target killings. TeJP was banned along with three terrorist organizations by the government of Pakistan on 12 January 2002, and again on 5 November 2011. |
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*[[Sipah-e-Muhammad Pakistan]] (SMP, Army of Muhammad) — is an Iranian supported Shia group that splintered off from TeJP;<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide">{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3045122.stm | work=BBC News | title=Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide | date=1 June 2004 |access-date=25 July 2023}}</ref> it has been involved in sectarian terrorist activity primarily in Pakistani Punjab.<ref name="SATP-SeMP">{{cite web |title=Sipah-e-Mohammed Pakistan, Terrorist Group of Pakistan |url=https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/smp.htm |website=South Asian Terrorism Portal |publisher=Institute for Conflict Management |access-date=26 July 2023}}</ref> in the 1980 and 90s it , "engaged in tit-for-tat killings" with the SSP.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> The SMP was proscribed by President Pervez Musharraf as a sectarian terrorist outfit on 14 August 2001.<ref name="SATP-SeMP"/> |
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==Victims and causes== |
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In early September 2010, three separate attacks were reported in different parts of Pakistan. The first one took place on [[September 2010 Lahore bombings|1 September in Lahore]] where at least 35 Shia were killed and 160 people were injured during a procession. The second attack was reported to have taken place in [[Mardan]], targeted [[Ahmadiyya]]s, and at least one person was killed. The [[September 2010 Quetta bombing|third one]] occurred on 3 September in the city of Quetta, and killed 55 people during another procession.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/46027/blast-in-quetta-2/|title=Suicide attack in Quetta kills 55 |last=Syed |first=Ali |date=3 September 2010 |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref> |
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===Barelvi Muslims=== |
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From 1986 to 2020 "more than 600 Barelvi leaders and activists" have been killed and "almost all" the major Sufi shrines, including [[Abdullah Shah Ghazi]], [[Data Darbar]], and [[Lal Shahbaz Qalandar]], have come under attack.<ref name="Dagia-Beyond-2020">{{cite news |last1=Dagia |first1=Niha |title=Beyond Ideologies: The Many Tehreeks of Pakistan |url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/12/beyond-ideologies-the-many-tehreeks-of-pakistan/ |access-date=2 September 2023 |work=The Diplomat |date=1 December 2020}}</ref> |
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On 16 December, a mortar attack killed nine people, including women and children, in Hangu, a town that has been a flash point for sectarian clashes between Shia and Sunni communities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Province, near the tribal area. On the same day in another attack, one child was killed and 28 people were wounded in Peshawar, the capital of KP province, as ''Shia'' Muslims marked Ashura.<ref>{{Cite web |
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| last = Mughal |
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| first = Aftab Alexander |
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| title = Pakistan: Taliban continues onslaught against minorities |
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| publisher = enerpub |
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| date = 29 December 2010 |
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| url = http://www.energypublisher.com/article.asp?id=45863 |
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| accessdate= 29 December 2010}}</ref> |
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In April 2006, the entire leadership of two prominent Barelvi outfits, the [[Sunni Tehreek]] and [[Jamaat Ahle Sunnat]] were killed in a [[Nishtar Park bombing|bomb attack in Nishtar Park]], in Pakistan's largest city and business hub [[Karachi]].<ref name="MT">{{cite news |date= 14 September 2015|title=Deepening sectarian schisms in Pakistan|url=https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/opinion/columnists/rana-banerji/deepening-sectarian-schisms-in-pakistan/articleshow/48951704.cms| newspaper=Mumbai Times}}</ref><ref name="Guardian">{{cite news |date= 12 April 2006|title=Karachi bomb attack leaves at least 45 Sunni worshippers dead|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/apr/12/pakistan.declanwalsh| newspaper=Guardian}}</ref> |
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=== 2012–2013 === |
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On 12 June 2009, [[Sarfraz Ahmed Naeemi]], a prominent Barelvi cleric and outspoken critic of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan was killed in a suicide bombing.<ref name="Reuters">{{cite news |last= Haider|first= Zeeshan|date= 13 June 2009|title=Pakistani cleric's murder stokes sectarian tension|url=https://cn.reuters.com/article/instant-article/idUSTRE55I1ML20090619| newspaper=Reuters}}</ref> |
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In the [[February 2012 Kohistan Shia Massacre]], 18 Shia Muslim residents of Gilgit-Baltistan travelling by bus from Rawalpindi, Punjab to Gilgit, Gilgit Baltistan in Pakistan died. The buses were stopped in Kohistan and the victims killed by individuals dressed in military uniforms based on their religious affiliation. The dead included three children, while 27 other passengers on the bus were spared. |
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====Sufi shrines==== |
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On [[August 2012 Mansehra Shia Massacre|16 August 2012]], four buses destined for Gilgit and the [[Eid-ul-Fitr]] festivals were stopped. Twenty-five Shia passengers were identified by their identity cards, separated from other passengers, and shot dead. Al-Qaeda-affiliated Sunni Muslim militants claimed responsibility for the attack. Three Shia Hazara community members were shot dead in the town of Quetta, which is home to a Sunni Taliban leadership group known as [[Quetta Shura]]. |
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{{further|Sufism#Pakistan|Sufism in Pakistan|Persecution of Sufis#Pakistan}} |
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Sufism, a mystical Islamic tradition, has a long history and a large popular following in Pakistan, where it is "followed by the Barelvi school of thought".<ref name="Suleman-sufi-2018">{{cite journal |last1=Suleman |first1=Muhammad |title=Institutionalisation of Sufi Islam after 9/11 and the Rise of Barelvi Extremism in Pakistan |journal=Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses |date=February 2018 |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=6–10 |jstor=26358994 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26358994 |access-date=2 September 2023}}</ref> |
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Orthodox Deobandis "perceive the Barelvi shrine culture as idolatrous"<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> and Deobandi militants have targeted major Barelvi shrines. Between 2005 and 2010 hundreds of Barelvi sect members were killed in more than 70 suicide attacks at different religious shrines .<ref name="NOREF">{{cite web |last= Yusuf|first= Huma|date= July 2012|title=Sectarian violence: Pakistan's greatest security threat?|url=https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/151436/949e7f9b2db9f947c95656e5b54e389e.pdf|publisher=Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre|access-date=7 October 2020}}</ref> In two years, 2010 and 2011, 128 people were killed and 443 were injured in 22 attacks on (mostly Sufi) shrines and tombs of saints and religious people in Pakistan.<ref name=circle>{{cite web|title=PAKISTAN SECURITY ANALYSIS ANNUAL REPORT 2011|url=http://www.circle.org.pk/images/Pakistan%20Security%20Annual%20Report.pdf|website=Circle.org.pk|access-date=24 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150408091515/http://circle.org.pk/images/Pakistan%20Security%20Annual%20Report.pdf|archive-date=8 April 2015|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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These shrines include |
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On [[2012 Dera Ismail Khan bombing|November 24, 2012]], 8 people were killed and several injured after bomb exploded in [[Ashoura]] procession of Shi'ites in [[Dera Ismail Khan]]. |
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* the [[Data Darbar]] in Lahore where a [[July 2010 Lahore bombings|July 2010 bombing]] killed at least 50 people injured 200 others; |
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* the [[Bari_Imam#Shrine|Bari Imam tomb]] in [[2005 Islamabad bombing|Islamabad in 2005]] where a bombing killed twenty people; |
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* the Shrine of [[Lal Shahbaz Qalandar]] in Sehwan [[Sehwan suicide bombing|in a November 2017 suicide attack]] where a bombing killed at least 90 people and injured over 300;<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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* [[Abdullah Shah Ghazi|Abdullah Shah Ghazi's]] tomb in Karachi was attacked in 2010 by suicide bombers who killed 10 and injured 50;<ref name="saviour saint">{{cite web|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1145799|title=Abdullah Shah Ghazi: The saviour saint|last1=Paracha|first1=Nadeem|date=23 November 2014|publisher=Dawn (newspaper)|access-date=12 February 2018}}</ref><ref name="Saint Ghazi-2010">{{Cite web|date=2010-10-08|title=Saint Ghazi and his shrine|url=http://beta.dawn.com/news/970247/saint-ghazi-and-his-shrine|access-date=2020-07-20|website=DAWN.COM|language=en}}</ref> |
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* the Khal Magasi in Balochistan, and [[Rahman Baba|Rahman Baba's]] tomb in Peshawar have also been attacked,<ref name="deobandi1"/> |
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Perpetrators of these acts include Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (aka [[Pakistani Taliban]], TTP), [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] (SSP), and [[Lashkar-e-Taiba]].<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/><ref name="deobandi1">{{citation |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=0Mx5DQAAQBAJ |title= Faith-Based Violence and Deobandi Militancy in Pakistan |page=371 |publisher=Springer |year=2016 |isbn= 9781349949663 }}</ref> |
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On 10 January 2013, several bombings took place in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta and in the northern Swat Valley, killing a total of 130 people and injuring at least 270. |
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Popular Sufi culture is centred on Thursday night gatherings at shrines and annual festivals which feature Sufi music and dance. Contemporary Islamic fundamentalists criticise its popular character, which in their view, deviates from the teachings and practice of Muhammad and his companions.<ref name=NYTSufivideo>{{cite news|title=Sufism Under Attack in Pakistan |url=http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/01/06/world/asia/1248069532117/sufism-under-attack-in-pakistan.html|access-date=21 May 2012|newspaper=The New York Times|author=Produced by Charlotte Buchen|format=video|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120528051803/http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/01/06/world/asia/1248069532117/sufism-under-attack-in-pakistan.html|archive-date=28 May 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=NYTAtWarSufi>{{cite news|title=The Islam That Hard-Liners Hate|url=http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/06/the-islam-that-hard-liners-hate/|access-date=21 May 2012|newspaper=The New York Times|date=6 January 2011|author=Huma Imtiaz|author2=Charlotte Buchen|format=blog|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130224224715/http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/06/the-islam-that-hard-liners-hate/|archive-date=24 February 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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A Bomb blast on Thursday 10 January 2013 occurred at a snooker club which was close to a police station and a Shia Mosque. "First suicidal attack was conducted and then a car bomb exploded on Alamdar Road," Said Mir Zubair Mehmood, the Capital City Police Officer. The bomb exploded at 8:50 p.m. local time. As police, rescuers and media personal rushed to the blast site, another bomb fixed to a vehicle parked near the site exploded, causing an even greater number of casualties. Over 100 were killed and 121 wounded in the second twin bomb attack. |
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Lashkae-e-jhangvi (LEJ), an extremist terrorist group banned by the government, has claimed responsibility for all the blasts. LEJ has organized under the name Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamat and the leader of the organization is Ahmad Ludhanvi, an extremist Salafi priest. |
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===Deobandi Muslims=== |
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The family members of the people killed in the bomb blast refused to bury the dead unless the perpetrators were prosecuted, the military provided security for and took over the city of Quetta, and attackers stop killing Shia Muslims. Protesters staged a sit-in beginning the in solidarity with them in other cities, including Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad, on both Friday and Saturday. Protests have also occurred outside the Pakistani embassy in London and the Birmingham Consulate, in addition to countries with Shia populations such as Canada and Australia. Islamic custom dictates the dead should be buried as soon possible; to postpone the burial is symbolic of the pain and suffering the families of the killed experience. |
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There have been assassinations or attempted assassinations of several Deobandi religious leaders. |
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{{further|January 2013 Pakistan bombings}} |
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On 18 May 2000, a leading Deobandi leader and scholar Mullah [[Muhammad Yusuf Ludhianvi]], who taught at one of Pakistan's largest Deobandi seminaries, the [[Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia]], was gunned down by unidentified attackers in Karachi, in a suspected targeted sectarian killing.<ref name="BBC-Ludhianvi">{{cite news |date= 18 May 2000|title=Sunni scholar killed in Karachi|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/753664.stm| newspaper=BBC}}</ref> |
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==== Quetta Market bombing ==== |
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On Saturday 16 February 2013, at least 90 people were reported dead and 180 wounded after a bomb exploded in a grocery market in Quetta. The death toll subsequently rose to 113.<ref>{{cite web|agency=The Nation|title=Hazaras bury 113 victims|url=http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/21-Feb-2013/hazaras-bury-113-victims|accessdate=23 February 2013}}</ref> The terrorist group Lashkae-e-jhangvi has claimed responsibility for the attack. Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf said, "the government was determined to fight such dastardly acts and bring the culprits to justice." The remote-controlled bomb was hidden in a water tanker, and ripped through the town's main bazaar, a language school, and a computer center. At the time of the blast on Saturday afternoon, dozens of people, mainly women, were shopping for the evening meal and children were leaving classes. Quetta police chief Mir Zubia Mehmood said the explosive weighed 1000 kg, which was larger than the explosives used in the January attack.<ref>{{cite web|title=Pakistani mourners bury Quetta bombing victims amid tensions|url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/02/20/289924/pakistanis-bury-victims-amid-tensions/|date=2013-02-20|agency=pressTV}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Pakistan Shi'ites demand better protection from militants|url=http://www.euronews.com/2013/02/18/pakistan-shi-ites-demand-better-protection-from-militants/|date=2013-02-18|agency=euronews}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Families of Quetta blast victims search for answers|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21554988}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=LJ leader Malik Ishaq detained in Rahim Yar Khan|url=http://dawn.com/2013/02/22/lj-leader-malik-ishaq-arrested-in-rahim-yar-khan/|agency=dawn.com|date=22 February 2013}}</ref> |
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On 30 May 2004, [[Mufti]] [[Nizamuddin Shamzai]], Shaykh al-Hadith of Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia was assassinated in [[Karachi]].<ref name="Dawn-Shamzai">{{cite news |date= 31 May 2004|title=Religious scholar Shamzai shot dead|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/394536/religious-scholar-shamzai-shot-dead| newspaper=Dawn}}</ref> |
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====Targeted killings==== |
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On 18 February 2013, an unidentified gunmen shot dead Dr. Syed Ali Haider and his 11-year-old son while they were driving in their car in the [[Gulberg, Lahore|Gulberg]] area of Lahore. Haider was shot six times in the head and died instantly while his son was shot once in the head and later died at a hospital. Haider was a leading vitreo-retinal surgeon, who also worked in collaboration with the [[Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust Hospital]]. According to his uncle, he had "no personal enmity" and his killing was sectarian-motivated as he belonged to the Shia community. These killings were widely condemned.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/508975/target-killing-doctor-son-shot-dead-in-lahore/|title=Target killing: Doctor, son shot dead in Lahore|agency=tribune.com.pk|date=18 February 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.lhrtimes.com/2013/02/18/cm-punjab-takes-notice-of-murder-of-dr-ali-haider-and-his-son/|title=CM Punjab takes notice of murder of Dr. Ali Haider and his son|agency=1hrtimes.com|date=18 February 2013}}</ref> |
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On 22 March 2020, an assassination attempt was made on Mufti [[Muhammad Taqi Usmani]], a prominent intellectual leader and religious scholar of the Deobandi movement, which he survived.<ref name="Dawn-Usmani">{{cite news |last= Ali|first= Imtiaz|date= 22 March 2019|title=Mufti Taqi Usmani survives assassination attempt in Karachi|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1471212/mufti-taqi-usmani-survives-assassination-attempt-in-karachi| newspaper=Dawn}}</ref> |
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==== Karachi bombing ==== |
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On 3 March 2013, a powerful bomb blast in the city of Karachi in the area of Abbas Town killed 45 people and wounded 150 others. The Bomb exploded outside a Shia Mosque as people were leaving from prayers. The blast destroyed the building, set other buildings on fire, and caused a power outage in the city. Human rights group have accused the Pakistani government of turning a "blind eye" to the bombings.<ref>{{cite web|title=Pakistan bomb: Karachi standstill after Shias attacked|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21651956|accessdate=4 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Deadly bombing hits Shia district in Karachi|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2013/03/20133315617954671.html|accessdate=4 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Bomb at Shi'ite mosque kills 45 in Pakistan|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/03/03/uk-pakistan-violence-karachi-idUKBRE9220AP20130303|accessdate=4 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Pakistan bomb explosion in Shia neighborhood kills 45|url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/03/03/291738/pakistan-bomb-blast-kills-23-shias/|accessdate=4 March 2013}}</ref> |
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On 10 October 2020, [[Muhammad Adil Khan|Maulana Muhammad Adil Khan]], another prominent religious scholar and |
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====Parachinar twin market bombing==== |
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head of [[Jamia Farooqia]], was gunned down by unidentified attackers in Karachi in apparent sectarian violence.<ref name="Dawn-Adil">{{cite news |last= Ali|first= Imtiaz|date= 11 October 2020|title=Jamia Farooqia head Maulana Adil, driver shot dead in Karachi|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1584316/jamia-farooqia-head-maulana-adil-driver-shot-dead-in-karachi| newspaper=Dawn}}</ref><ref name="Tribune-Adil">{{cite news |date= 10 October 2020|title=Prominent religious scholar gunned down in Karachi|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/2267805/prominent-religious-scholar-gunned-down-in-karachi| newspaper=The Express Tribune Pakistan}}</ref> |
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On Friday 26 July 2013, a twin set of bomb blasts occurred in Parachinar, the main town of Kurram tribal Agency. The bomb blast killed 60 people and injured at least 187.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-26/pakistan-bombing-kills-40-wounds-60-official-says.html |title=Pakistan Attacks Kill 9 Day After Bombs Leave 60 Dead |date=27 July 2013 |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref> The first bomb blast hit the Parachinar market as people were busy buying food in preparation for the opening of the fast. The second bomb exploded near a road side. A terrorist organisation called Ansarul mujahideenhas claimed responsibility.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-2-192855-Parachinar-blasts-death-toll-reaches-60 |title=Parachinar blasts death toll reaches 60 |date=28 July 2013 |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref> Abu baser spokesmen told a news channel that the attacks were carried out to seek revenge for Sunni Muslims in Syria and Iraq. "We have planned more similar attacks against the Shia community in Pakistan." Syed Jamal Shan, who visited the twin bombing site, told the Express Tribune, "The blast took place when people were shopping for ifthar. Blood and pieces of human flesh were scattered all around." Shia clerics and leaders demanded military action against the perpetrators of the twin blasts similar to the one in the Swat valley. The elder of the six Sunni tribes living in lower Kurram Agency expressed their sorrow over the incident to show solidarity with the victims of the bombings. The Sunni elders expressed their pain they share over the tragedy.{{citation needed|date=November 2013}} |
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Deobandis have alleged a bias towards Barelvis by the [[Government of Punjab, Pakistan|provincial government of Punjab]].<ref name="The Express Tribune">{{cite news |last= Bhatty|first= Karamat|date= 4 December 2011|title=Deobandis fume at govt's a'Barelvi bias'|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/301812/deobandis-fume-at-govt%E2%80%99s-a%E2%80%98barelvi-bias%E2%80%99| newspaper=The Express Tribune}}</ref> |
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====Ashoura violence==== |
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During the Shia procession for [[Ashoura]] in November, violence took place in Rawalpindi leading to a curfew where when the Ashoura procession was passing in front of a Sunni mosque. The curfew was lifted, but violence continued and the curfew was reimposed. Nine people In which 8 shias and a passerby died and 50 others were injured, while a Sunni seminary students burned markets down. Violence also erupted in Multan and Chishtian, where soldiers were called out to maintain law and order. In Chishtian, a Shia mosque was partially damaged and several shops were destroyed when Sunnis torched them. At least six Imambargahs and shi'ite mosques were burnt by the armed group of Ahle-Sunnat wal Jamaat on the night of Ashura. Imambargah Hifazat Ali Shah, Bohar Bazar, Rawalpindi was burnt and Zuljinnah (Horse) was killed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2013/11/curfew-renewed-after-clashes-pakistan-2013111745148801609.html |title=Curfew renewed after clashes in Pakistan |date=17 November 2013 |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2013/11/pakistan-sectarian-clashes-prompt-curfew-2013111672610764501.html |title=Pakistan sectarian clashes prompt curfew |date=16 November 2013 |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref> |
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===Shia Muslims=== |
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Following that violence, in Kohat, at least three people were killed and the army was called in to establish control. In this incident, the Sunni armed group [[Ahl e Sunnat Wal Jamaat]] held a rally on 18 November to protest the Rawalpindi; the deaths then happened after Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat's terrorists fired near a Shia mosque.<ref name="aljazeera.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2013/11/deadly-sectarian-unrest-hits-pakistan-20131118102228265410.html |title=Deadly sectarian unrest hits Pakistan |date=18 November 2013 |accessdate=12 December 2013}}</ref> |
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{{see also|Genocide of Kashmiri Shias|Madhe Sahaba Agitation|Therhi Massacre}} |
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[[File:Wadi-e-Hussain Cemetery (Karachi, Pakistan).jpg|thumb|Since 2001, more than 2,600 [[Shia Islam|Shia Muslims]] have been killed in violent attacks in Pakistan. Many are buried in the [[Wadi-e-Hussain]] [[Cemetery]], [[Karachi]].<ref name=Wadi-e-Hussain>{{Cite web|last=Batool|first=Syeda Sana |title=Wadi-e-Hussain: A graveyard for Pakistan's Shia victims |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2021/1/6/wadi-e-hussain-a-graveyard-for-pakistani-shia |date=6 January 2021 |access-date=2021-01-11|website=www.aljazeera.com|language=en}}</ref>]] |
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Shia, the largest religious minority group in Pakistan, have been "the focus of most sectarian violence" in Pakistan.<ref name="GCfR2P">{{cite web |title=Pakistan. POPULATIONS AT RISK |url=https://www.globalr2p.org/countries/pakistan/ |website=Global Centre for Responsibility to Protect |access-date=30 August 2023 |date=2 April 2022}}</ref> |
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Between 2001 and 2018, approximately 4800 Shias were killed in sectarian violence.{{NoteTag| 4800 comes from South Asia Terrorism Portal;<ref name="ANI-2022">{{cite web |title=Pakistan: State patronage propels Sunni groups to target Shias, Ahmadis |url=https://www.aninews.in/news/world/asia/pakistan-state-patronage-propels-sunni-groups-to-target-shias-ahmadis20220918151527/ |website=ANI News |access-date=5 August 2023 |date=18 September 2022}}</ref> the blog "Let us build Pakistan" (LUBP), states a much larger number of Shia Muslims were killed over a longer period -- 24,306 killed from 1955 to 30 June 2021. (The number is based on reports in the "mainstream media" and may exclude some deaths "due to paucity of resources, fear of victimization, and lack of communication networks in many areas").<ref name=lubpak-database-2921/>}} Extreme sectarian Sunni Muslims have [[takfir]]ed (excommunicated) Shia for their belief that the first three Muslim caliphs ([[Abu Bakr]], [[Umar]], [[Uthman]]) were usurpers ([[Ali]] being the only true [[Rashidun Caliphate|Rashidun Caliph]] in the Shia view).<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/><ref>Crisis Group interviews, Lahore and by telephone, April 2022</ref> |
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====Early years of Pakistan==== |
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===2014=== |
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At least one scholar ([[Vali Nasr]]), sees the period before the [[Iranian Revolution|Iranian Islamic Revolution]] as a time of relative unity and harmony between pious, traditionalist Sunni and Shia Muslims—a unity brought on by a feeling of being under siege from a common threat, i.e. [[secularism]].<ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006, p.106">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, 2006, p. 106</ref> However, the first major sectarian massacre in Pakistan occurred in 1963, some years before the Iranian revolution, when [[Therhi massacre|118 Shia were killed by a mob of Deobandi Muslims]] in [[Therhi]], [[Sindh]]. |
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[[Muhammad Ali Jinnah]], the [[List of Pakistan Movement activists|founder]] of [[Pakistan]] (whose religious beliefs are disputed but who followed the [[Twelver]] Shi'a teachings as an adult),{{notetag| Jinnah was of a [[Gujarati people|Gujarati]] [[Khoja]] [[Nizari Isma'ilism|Nizari Isma'ili]] [[Shia Islam|Shi’a Muslim]] background, though he later followed the [[Twelver]] Shi'a teachings,<ref>{{cite book |last=Walsh |first=Judith E. |year=2017 |title=A Brief History of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iekF9X3OwwMC&pg=PA173 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |page=173 |isbn=978-1-4381-0825-4 |quote=son of a middle-class merchant of the Muslim Khoja community who had migrated to Sind from Gujarat}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thefridaytimes.com/24122010/page27.shtml|title=Was Jinnah a Shia or a Sunni?|first=Khaled|last=Ahmed|date=24 December 2010|work=The Friday Times|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111117111449/http://www.thefridaytimes.com/24122010/page27.shtml |archive-date=17 November 2011}}</ref>}} was known to say things like "... in this state of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the state ... ".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1598134|title=Time to idealise Jinnah's Pakistan|website=dawn.com|author=Liaquat H. Merchant|date=27 December 2020 }}</ref><ref name="OR">{{cite web |title=Muhammad Ali Jinnah 1876–1948 Indian statesman and founder of Pakistan |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780191826719.001.0001/q-oro-ed4-00018430;jsessionid=662C504CD2EAD8C467035CEE93154EBC |website=Oxford Reference |access-date=25 July 2023}}</ref> Historian Moonis Ahmar writes, "in the formative phase of Pakistan, the notion of religious extremism was almost non-existent as the founder of the country, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, made it clear that the new state would not be theocratic in nature. However, after his demise on September 11, 1948, his successors failed to curb the forces of religious militancy ..."<ref name="Ahmar-2012">{{cite journal |last1=Ahmar |first1=Moonis |title=Pakistan Vision for a Secular Pakistan? Moonis Ahmar Pages 217-228 |journal=Strategic Analysis |date=12 Mar 2012 |volume=36 |issue=2 |page=abstract |doi=10.1080/09700161.2012.646517 |s2cid=154446948 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09700161.2012.646517 |access-date=25 July 2023}}</ref>{{notetag|After the death of Jinnah, [[Liaquat Ali Khan|Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan]], allied with the ulema and passed the [[Objectives Resolution]] which adopted the Islam as state religion. Jinnah's appointed law minister, [[Jogendra Nath Mandal]], resigned from his post. Shias of Pakistan allege discrimination by the Pakistani government since 1948, claiming that Sunnis are given preference in business, official positions and administration of justice.<ref name=":22">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O7GPWbu8XKgC&q=gilgit+shias+1988+killing&pg=PT24|title=Around Rakaposhi|last=Jones|first=Brian H.|publisher=Brian H Jones|year=2010|isbn=9780980810721|quote=Many Shias in the region feel that they have been discriminated against since 1948. They claim that the Pakistani government continually gives preferences to Sunnis in business, in official positions, and in the administration of justice...The situation deteriorated sharply during the 1980s under the presidency of the tyrannical Zia-ul Haq when there were many attacks on the Shia population.}}</ref>}} Although the sectarian literature attacking Shi'ism has been distributed into Punjab since Shah Abd al-Aziz wrote his ''Tuhfa Asna Ashariya'', major incidents of anti-Shia violence began only after mass migration in 1947, when the strict and sectarian clergy from [[Uttar Pradesh]] brought their version of Islam to the Sufism-oriented Punjab and Sindh.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} |
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====Pak-Iran border Pilgrims killings==== |
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At least 23 people die and seven are wounded in gun and suicide attack in a restaurant near the Pakistan-Iran border. Most or all of these people are believed to be Shia Pilgrims coming from Iran. |
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They say the gunmen targeted hotels in the town of [[Taftan, Balochistan]] province, where the pilgrims were staying after returning from Iran. Recent years have witnessed a series of bloody attacks by Sunni militants on Pakistan's Shia community.<ref name="Shia pilgrims killed in Pakistan">{{cite web|agency=BBC News|title=Shia pilgrims killed in Pakistan|url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-27757856|website=bbc.com/news/}}</ref> |
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<ref name="Border attack kills Pakistani pilgrims">{{cite web|title=Border attack kills Pakistani pilgrims|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/06/border-attack-kills-pakistani-pilgrims-201468225422138438.html|date=9 June 2014|website=aljazeera.com}}</ref> |
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Sectarian Sunni extremists were "particularly harsh in damning Ashoura"—aka Azadari, or the [[Mourning of Muharram]]—as "a heathen spectacle" and a "shocking affront to the memory of the rightful caliphs".<ref name=9-zaman>{{cite journal |author=Muhammad Qasim Zaman |title=Sectarianism in Pakistan: The Radicalization of Shi'i and Sunni Identities |journal=Modern Arab Studies |volume=32 |issue=3 |date=1998 |pages=687–716}}, quote from and cited in Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, (2006), p.164</ref> |
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====Shikarpur Mosque bomb blast==== |
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In Friday, 30 January 2015, over 60 people were killed at a bomb blast at a Shia mosque in Shikarpur, Pakistan. Militant group Jundullah claimed responsibility for the attack.<ref name="Pakistan mosque blast: Mass funerals for Shia victims">{{cite web|agency=BBC News|title=Pakistan mosque blast: Mass funerals for Shia victims|url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-31072154|website=bbc.co.uk}}</ref> |
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Many students of Molana Abdul Shakoor Farooqi and Molana Hussain Ahmad Madani migrated to Pakistan and either set up seminaries here or became part of the Tanzim-e-Ahle-Sunnat (TAS) or [[Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam]] (JUI), preaching against Shi'i rituals of Azadari/Muharram/Ashoura.{{NoteTag| Among those in Tanzim-e-Ahle-Sunnat (TAS) or Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI), preaching against Shi'i rituals of Azadari were: Molana Noorul Hasan Bukhari, Molana Dost Muhammad Qureshi, Molana Abdus Sattar Taunsavi, Molana Mufti Mahmood, Molana Abdul Haq Haqqani, Molana Sarfaraz Khan Safdar Gakharvi, and Molana Manzoor Ahmad Naumani.}} |
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====Shiite man killed in police custody==== |
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An axe-wielding police officer killed a Shiite man in police custody, claiming he had committed blasphemy by insulting companions of the Prophet Muhammad.<ref name=bbc-axe>{{cite news|title=Pakistan police officer kills 'blasphemer' with axe|url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-29933125|accessdate=30 June 2015|agency=bbc news|date=6 November 2014}}</ref> |
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<!--"It is important to note here that it was not Zia, but Liaquat Ali Khan who had patronised the perpetrators of Lucknow sectarianism and started the process of Islamization. [[Ayub Khan|Muhammad Ayub Khan]] (second president of Pakistan from 1958 to 1969) not only alienated Bengalis but also promoted a historical narrative of Ghulam Ahmad Pervaiz, a conspiracy theorist who attacked Shias in his books like ''Shahkaar-e-Risalat''. Long before Zia, the two-nation theory of Jinnah had been attributed to Ahmad Sirhindi and Shah Waliullah. These preachers were presented as heroes and real founders of Pakistan in Syllabus."{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}} could find no evidence for this searching the internet, date=July 2023--> |
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===2015=== |
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In the 1950s, ''Tanzim-e-Ahle-Sunnat'' (TAS) started to arrange public gatherings all over Pakistan to preach against Shia sanctities. The TAS monthly periodical, called ''Da’wat'', also included anti-Shia preaching. During the Muharram of 1955, attacks took place on at least 25 Shia targets in Punjab. In 1956, thousands of armed villagers gathered to attack Shia mourning Hussein in the small town of Shahr Sultan, but were prevented by Police at least from killing anyone. On 7 August 1957, three Shias were killed during an attack in Sitpur village. In response to Shia outrage, TAS insisted the cause of the rioting and bloodshed was Azadari, not those attacking it, and demanded that the government ban the tradition. In May 1958, a Shia orator Agha Mohsin was target-killed in Bhakkar.<ref>A. Rieck, "The Shias of Pakistan", pp. 88 – 98, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> |
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[[Ayub Khan|Muhammad Ayub Khan]] enforced Martial Law in 1958. In the 1960s, Shias started to face state persecution when Azadari processions were banned at some places and the ban was lifted only after protests. In Lahore, the main procession of Mochi gate was forced to change its route. After Martial Law was lifted in 1962, anti-Shia propaganda started again, both in the form of books and weekly papers. The Deobandi TAS demanded the Azadari to be limited to Shia ghetto's. Following Muharram, on 3 June 1963, two Shias were killed and over a hundred injured in an attack on Ashura procession in Lahore. In a small town of Tehri in the Khairpur District of Sindh, 120 Shias were slaughtered. On 16 June, six Deobandi organisations arranged a public meeting in Lahore where they blamed Shia for the violence. The report of the commission appointed to inquire into the riots led to no punishment of the perpetrators.<ref>A. Rieck, "The Shias of Pakistan", pp. 109 – 114, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref>{{notetag|Mahmood Ahmad Abbasi, Abu Yazid Butt, Qamar-ud-Din Sialvi and others wrote books against Shias.}} |
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====Lahore church bombings==== |
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On 15 March 2015, two churches in Lahore [[Lahore church bombings|were bombed]] during [[Sunday service]]s,<ref name="geo.tv">{{cite news|url=http://www.geo.tv/article-178233-Two-blasts-at-Lahore-churches-claim-15-lives-|title=Two blasts at Lahore churches claim 15 lives - PAKISTAN - geo.tv|date=15 March 2015|work=geo.tv|accessdate=15 March 2015}}</ref> killing 15 people and wounding seventy others.<ref name=30-6-15-aljazeera>{{cite news|title=Worshippers killed in Pakistan church bombings |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/03/lahore-churches-hit-deadly-bomb-attacks-150315074103093.html |accessdate=30 June 2015|agency=al jazeera|date=15 March 2015}}</ref><ref name=agencies>{{cite web|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1169713/15-killed-in-taliban-attack-on-lahore-churches|title=15 killed in Taliban attack on Lahore churches|first1=Imran|last1=Gabol|first2=Nadeem|last2=Haider|first3=Waseem|last3=Riaz|first4=Abbas|last4=Haider|first5=Akbar|last5=Ali|work=[[Dawn (newspaper)|Dawn]]|date=15 March 2015|accessdate=15 March 2015}}</ref> |
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In 1969, Ashura procession was attacked in Jhang. On 26 February 1972, Ashura procession was stone pelted on in Dera Ghazi Khan. In May 1973, the Shia neighbourhood of Gobindgarh in Sheikhupura district was attacked by Deobandi mob. There were troubles in Parachinar and Gilgit too. In 1974, Shia villages were attacked in Gilgit by armed Deobandi men. January 1975 saw several attacks on Shia processions in Karachi, Lahore, Chakwal and Gilgit. In Babu Sabu, a village near Lahore, three Shias were killed and many were left injured.<ref>A. Rieck, "'''[https://books.google.com/books?id=t6aKCwAAQBAJ&q=Babu+Sabu+near+Lahore&pg=PA180 The Shias of Pakistan]'''", pp. 181– 184, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> |
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====2015 Karachi bus shooting==== |
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On 13 May 2015 an [[2015 Karachi bus shooting|armed attack]] on a bus travelling near [[Karachi]] left at least 45 people dead. Most of the victims were of the [[Ismaili people|Ismaili]] [[Shia Islam|Shia]] minority, suggesting the attack to have been a [[Target killings in Pakistan|targeted killing]] of [[Sectarian violence in Pakistan|sectarian]] nature. |
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An example of anti-Shi'i propaganda can be found in an editorial of ''Al-Haq'' magazine'' written by Molana Samilul Haq:'' |
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===2016=== |
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{{expand section|date=October 2016}} |
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<blockquote>"We must also remember that Shias consider it their religious duty to harm and eliminate the Ahle-Sunna .... the Shias have always conspired to convert Pakistan to a Shia state ... They have been conspiring with our foreign enemies and with the Jews. It was through such conspiracies that the Shias masterminded the separation of East Pakistan and thus satiated their thirst for the blood of the Sunnis".<ref name=":32">Khaled Ahmad, "Sectarian War", p. 136, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref></blockquote> |
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On 4 October-2016, 4 women from Shia Hazara Community returning their home were killed and several injured, when two motorcyclists opened fire on a local bus which was travelling to Hazara Town, [[Quetta]], Pakistan.<ref>{{cite web|author=Syed Ali Shah| url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1287981/four-hazara-women-killed-as-gunmen-open-fire-on-quetta-bus |title= Four Hazara women killed as gunmen open fire on Quetta bus | publisher=Dawn News | date= 5 October 2016|accessdate=12 November 2016}}</ref> |
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(In fact, contrary to the claims of Samilul Haq, [[Shia Islam in Bangladesh|the Shia population of Bangladesh is very small]], and it is widely agreed that the [[Bangladesh Liberation War#Background|independence struggle of Bangladesh]] was motivated by economic and cultural grievances, (refusal by the government to use the [[Bengali language]], disproportionate government funding of West Pakistan, etc.) Shias of Pakistan form a small minority in civil and military services where they have tried to downplay their religious identity for fears of discrimination.)<ref>Andreas Rieck, "[https://books.google.com/books?id=2HdeCwAAQBAJ&q=preface The Shias of Pakistan]", p. xi, Oxford University Press, (2016).</ref> |
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On 17 Oct-2016, one child killed and 15 others injured including 11 ladies and children in a cracker bomb attack during a ladies Majlis being held at Imambargah Dar-e-Abbas, situated in FC Area, Karachi.<ref>{{cite web|author=Imtiaz Ali| url= http://www.dawn.com/news/1290555/teenager-killed-in-blast-outside-imambargah-in-karachi-15-others-injured|title= Teenager killed in blast outside Imambargah in Karachi, 15 others injured| publisher=Dawn News | date= 18 October 2016|accessdate=12 November 2016}}</ref> |
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29 October 2016 at least five killed and seven people, including women injured when armed terrorists targeting Shia Muslims opened fire on participants of ladies Majlis (Shia religious gathering) at home in Nazimabad No.4, Karachi, close to Police & Ranger Stations.<ref>{{cite web |author=Asim Malik | url= http://aaj.tv/2016/10/five-people-gun-down-in-karachi/| title= Five people killed in Karachi sectarian attack| publisher= Aaj tv | date= 29 October 2016 | accessdate=12 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Jon Boone and Kiyya Baloch| url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/oct/31/tight-security-for-funeral-of-briton-and-brothers-shot-dead-in-pakistan? |title=Tight security for funeral of Briton and brothers shot dead in Pakistan| publisher= theguardian | date= 31 October 2016|accessdate=12 November 2016}}</ref> |
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====Post-Zia era and causes of the outbreak of sectarianism==== |
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On 12 November-2016, above 45 people, including women and children, were killed and more than 100 injured by a bomb explosion in the crowded Shah Noorani Shrine situated in [[Hub, Balochistan|Hub town]], Lasbela District, [[Balochistan]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Zafar Baloch|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/1228939/12-dead-dozens-injured-hubs-shah-noorani-shrine-explosion/ |title=At least 40 dead, over 100 injured in Khuzdar's Shah Noorani shrine explosion|publisher= The Express Tribune|date=12 November 2016|accessdate=12 November 2016}}</ref> |
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"Most analysts agree"{{cn|date=November 2023}}that Sunni-Shia strife began in earnest in 1979 when having overthrown populist leftist [[Zulfikar Ali Bhutto]] (a Shia) was overthrown by General [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq]]. |
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=====Some causes===== |
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==Sufism== |
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*General Zia was a conservative and pious Sunni Muslim, but as a military dictator he also needed to legitimise his military rule and did so by Islamicising Pakistani politics.<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide"/> Islamic religious parties felt empowered by the islamization program and the Islamic religious revival in general, and the influence of socialism and modernism began to wane. According to the [[International Crisis Group]], |
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{{further|Sufism#Pakistan|Sufism in Pakistan}} |
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{{blockquote|Sunni militant groups sunk their roots in Pakistan during General Zia-ul-Haq’s military government (1977-1988). The anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan, efforts to curb Shia militancy in response to Iran’s 1979 revolution, the regime’s Islamisation |
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In two years, 2010 and 2011, 128 people were killed and 443 were injured in 22 attacks on Shrines and tombs of saints and religious people in Pakistan, most of them Sufi in orientation.<ref name=circle>{{cite web|title=PAKISTAN SECURITY ANALYSIS ANNUAL REPORT 2011|url=http://www.circle.org.pk/images/Pakistan%20Security%20Annual%20Report.pdf|website=www.circle.org.pk|accessdate=24 November 2014}}</ref> |
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program – all these Zia-era policies prepared the ground for organisations with sectarian agendas to flourish.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/>}} |
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*Among the mujahideen (mentioned above) returning to Pakistan from Afghanistan in the late 1980s, bringing "with them a sizeable supply of arms, ammunition and a proclivity for violence",<ref name="IfCM-SATP"/> were both Sunni and Shia. However, Sunnis formed a large majority in Pakistan, and also among the mujahideen. Radical Sunni Islamists were able to establish armed groups like the Sipah-e-Sahaba.<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide"/> |
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*Mujahideen who went to fight [[Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir#1982–2004|jihad in Kashmir]]<ref>J. R. Schmidt, "[https://archive.org/details/unravelingpakist0000schm <!-- quote=kashmir protests. --> The Unraveling: Pakistan in the Age of Jihad]", ch. 4, Macmillan, (2012).</ref> <!-- The followers of [[Syed Ahmad Barelvi]]'s puritanical form of Islam were trained at [[Balakot]], the place where he was killed while fleeing the joint Sikh-Pashtun attack in 1831.--> as part of organisations, like [[Hizbul Mujahideen]], were drawn from the ideological spheres of Deobandi seminaries and Jamaat-e-islami,<ref name="Khaled Ahmad pp. 133"/> a milieu intolerant of Shia. These jihadis used time at home to act as part-time sectarian terrorists. |
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*The Iranian Islamic revolution of 1979 "boosted" the self-confidence of Shia in Pakistan (and elsewhere), but created a Sunni backlash.<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide"/><ref name=nasr-2006-148>Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, (2006), pp. 148–50</ref> Shia were traditionally subservient to the majority Sunni sect, but the Islamic revolution—in majority Shia Iran, led by a Shia religious leader, and praised by a leading Sunni Islamist (and Pakistani) [[Abul A'la Maududi]]—inspired Shia. Newly assertive Shia joined "avowedly Shia political movements", (such as [[Tehreek-e-Jafaria (Pakistan)|Tehreek-e-Jafaria Pakistan]]) often funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, and pushing "specifically Shia political agendas".<ref>Vali, ''The Shia Revival'' (Norton), 2006), p.139</ref> |
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:In Pakistan, Shia resisted [[Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization]] campaign as "Sunnification", as the laws and regulations were based on Sunni ''[[fiqh]]'' (jurisprudence). In July 1980, 25,000 Shia protested the [[Islamization]] laws in the capital [[Islamabad]]. Shia won an exemption from state zakat collection, but in the long term helped "make sectarian divisions a central issue in the country's politics".<ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006 p.160-1">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival,'' Norton, (2006), pp. 160-1</ref> This assertiveness changed the attitude of Sunni towards Shia from "misguided brethren" to "upstart heretics", a viewpoint that came to be spread not just by "marginal extremists" but "senior Sunni Ulama".<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, 164">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, (2006), p.164</ref> |
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[[Sufism]], a mystical Islamic tradition, has a long history and a large popular following in Pakistan. Popular Sufi culture is centred on Thursday night gatherings at shrines and annual festivals which feature Sufi music and dance. Contemporary Islamic fundamentalists criticise its popular character, which in their view, does not accurately reflect the teachings and practice of the Prophet and his companions.<ref name=NYTSufivideo>{{cite news|title=Sufism Under Attack in Pakistan|url=http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/01/06/world/asia/1248069532117/sufism-under-attack-in-pakistan.html|accessdate=21 May 2012|newspaper=The New York Times|author=Produced by Charlotte Buchen|format=video}}</ref><ref name=NYTAtWarSufi>{{cite news|title=The Islam That Hard-Liners Hate|url=http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/06/the-islam-that-hard-liners-hate/|accessdate=21 May 2012|newspaper=The New York Times|date=6 January 2011|author=Huma Imtiaz|author2=Charlotte Buchen|format=blog}}</ref> |
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*Personalities. Further exacerbating the situation was the dislike between Shia leader Imam Khomeini and Pakistan's General [[Muhammad Zia ul-Haq]].<ref>Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, (2006), pp. 161–62</ref> Khomeini threatened to do to the Pakistani leader "what he had done to the Shah" if Zia mistreated the Shia in Pakistan;<ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006 p.138">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival,'' Norton, (2006), pp. 138</ref> and on another occasion mocked Zia's warning not to provoke a superpower by saying he, (Khomeini), had his own superpower – his being God while Zia's was the United States.<ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006 pp.161-2">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival,'' Norton, (2006), pp.161–2</ref> |
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==Ahmadis== |
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*Khomeini's campaign to overthrow the House of Saud in Saudi Arabia and the strong opposition among pious Sunni to it.<ref name="Mahadevan-2017-quote">{{cite journal |last1=Mahadevan |first1=Prem |title=Sectarianism in Pakistan |journal=CSS Analysis in Security Policy |date=March 2017 |issue=205 |url=https://css.ethz.ch/content/dam/ethz/special-interest/gess/cis/center-for-securities-studies/pdfs/CSSAnalyse205-EN.pdf |access-date=28 July 2023 |quote=The emergence of sectarianism in Pakistan was seen as primarily due to the wider Saudi-Iranian rivalry, ...}}</ref> The Iranian revolution had surprised Iranians as well as the rest of the world in overthrowing what everyone thought was the powerful, secure, [[Muhammad Reza Shah|Shah of Iran]]. This contributed to confidence among the revolutionaries that their success was just the beginning of similar revolutionary overthrows of other lax Muslim monarchies. Khomeini set his eyes on Saudi Arabia, which was an ally of America, but also the patron of conservative Sunni revivalists, not least those in Pakistan.<ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006 p.155"/><ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006 p.143-4">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival,'' Norton, (2006), pp.143-4</ref> Saudi [[International propagation of Salafism and Wahhabism|spent billions of dollars every year funding]] Islamic schools, scholarships, fellowships, and mosques around the Sunni world. "Thousands of aspiring preachers, Islamic scholars, and activists ... joined Saudi-funded think tanks and research institutions." They "then spread throughout the Muslim world to teach" what they had learned and "work at Saudi-funded universities, schools, mosques, and research institutions."<ref name="Nasr, Vali 2006 p.155">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival,'' Norton, (2006), pp. 155</ref> One influential conservative Sunni religious leader, [[Manzoor Nomani|Molana Manzoor Ahmad Naumani]], opposed both Shia and the Sunni Islamist [[Jamaat-e-Islami (Pakistan)|Jamaat-e-Islami]] and feared that the revolution might actually empower them both. He obtained funding from Rabta Aalam-i-Islami of Saudi Arabia and wrote a book against Shias and Khomeini, (''Īrānī inqilāb, Imām K͟humainī, aur Shīʻiyat'' or "Khomeini, Iranian Revolution and Shi'ite faith".) Meanwhile, cleric Molana Haq Nawaz Jhangvi from Punjab, reorganized ''Taznim-e-Ahle-Sunnat'' renaming it ''Anjuman Sipah-e-Sahaba'' (ASS), later changing it to ''Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan'' (SSP). |
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*The Islamic revival brought out the doctrinal differences between Shia and Sunni. According to scholar [[Vali Nasr]], as the Muslim world was decolonialised and nationalism lost its appeal, religion filled its place.{{cn|date=November 2023}} As religion became more important, so did a return to its fundamentals and a following of its finer points; differences once overlooked or tolerated became deviations to be denouncing and fought, and there were many differences between Sunni and Shia. Fundamentalism blossomed and conflicts reasserted, in particular when Sunni followed the strict teachings of Sunni scholar [[Ibn Taymiyyah#Shi'a Islam|Ibn Taymiyyah]],<ref name=nasr-2006-106>Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, 2006, pp. 106–07</ref> who considered Shia [[Apostacy in Islam|apostates]]<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Memon|editor1-first=Muhammad Umar|editor1-link=Muhammad Umar Memon|title=Ibn Taimiya's Struggle Against Popular Religion: With an Annotated Translation of His Kitab iqtida as-sirat al-mustaqim mukhalafat ashab al-jahim|date=1976|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|isbn=9783111662381|page=361|edition=reprint}}</ref> and who is held in high regard by Sunni [[Salafi]]. |
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=====Attacks===== |
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A series of attacks in the later 1970s and 1980s include: |
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*In February 1978, Ali Basti, a Shia neighborhood in Karachi, was attacked by a Deobandi mob and 5 men were killed.<ref>{{cite web|date=2013-02-10|title=Shia-Sunni conflict: One man's faith is another man's funeral|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/505605/shia-sunni-conflict-one-mans-faith-is-another-mans-funeral|access-date=2020-11-22|website=The Express Tribune|language=en}}</ref> |
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*During [[Mourning of Muharram|Muharram]] of that year, Azadari processions were attacked in Lahore and Karachi leaving 22 Shias dead.<ref name=":20">{{Cite web|url=https://lubpak.net/archives/132675|title=Shia Genocide Database|access-date=7 February 2021|archive-date=26 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526230842/https://lubpak.net/archives/132675|url-status=dead}}</ref> |
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*After [[Soviet–Afghan_War#Soviet_deployment,_1979–1980|Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979]], the country became a safe haven for conservative Sunni jihadis ostensibly in Pakistan to wage jihad against the Marxists in Afghanistan, but these jihadis also sometimes attacked Shia civilians. During [[Mourning of Muharram|Muharram]] 1980, the Afghan Refugees settled near Parachinar attacked Shia villages and in 1981, they expelled Shias from [[Sadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]]. |
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*In 1983, Shias neighbourhoods of Karachi were attacked on [[Mawlid|Eid Milad-un-Nabi]]. At least 60 people were killed<ref>A. Rieck, "The Shias of Pakistan", p. 218, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> 94 houses were set on fire, 10 Shias were killed.<ref name=":20" /> On [[Mourning of Muharram|Muharram]] 1983, there were again attacks on Shias in Karachi.<ref name=":03">{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1987/11/10/sectarian-strife-threatens-pakistans-fragile-society/|title=Sectarian Strife Threatens Pakistan's Fragile Society|last=Broder|first=Jonathan|date=10 November 1987|work=Chicago Tribune|access-date=31 December 2016|quote=Pakistan`s first major Shiite-Sunni riots erupted in 1983 in Karachi during the Shiite holiday of [[Mourning of Muharram|Muharram]]; at least 60 people were killed. More Muharram disturbances followed over the next three years, spreading to Lahore and the Baluchistan region and leaving hundreds more dead. Last July, Sunnis and Shiites, many of them armed with locally made automatic weapons, clashed in the northwestern town of Parachinar, where at least 200 died.}}</ref> |
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*From 1984 to 1986 Muharram disturbances spread to Lahore and the Baluchistan region leaving hundreds more dead.<ref name=":03"/> |
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*On 6 July 1985, police opened fire on a Shia demonstration in Quetta, killing 17 Shias.<ref>A. Rieck, "The Shias of Pakistan", pp. 224 – 225, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> Shias responded and 11 attackers were killed. According to police report, among the 11 attackers who died in the clash only 2 were identified as police sepoys and 9 were civilian Deobandis wearing fake police uniforms. |
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*In Muharram 1986, 7 Shias were killed in Punjab, 4 in Lahore, 3 in Layyah.<ref name=":20" /> |
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*In July 1987, Shia in the northwestern town of [[Parachinar]] were attacked by Sunni Afghan Mujahideen, but were able to fight back, many of them armed with locally made automatic weapons.<ref name=":03"/> 52 Shias and 120 attackers lost their lives.<ref name=Rieck-229>A. Rieck, ''The Shias of Pakistan'', p. 229, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> |
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*In 1988, 9 unarmed Shia civilians were shot dead while defying a ban on Shia procession in Dera Ismail Khan. |
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In the [[1988 Gilgit Massacre]], somewhere between 150 and 900 Shia Muslims were killed after fighting started over whether [[Fasting during Ramadan|Ramadan fasting]] was over and [[Eid al-Fitr]] could begin (Sunni maintaining the Shia had broken the fast too early). In response to the riots and revolt against Zia-ul-Haq's regime, the [[Pakistan Army]] led an armed group of local Sunni tribals from [[Chilas]], accompanied by [[Osama bin Laden]]-led Sunni militants from [[Democratic Republic of Afghanistan|Afghanistan]] and Pakistan's [[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa|North-West Frontier Province]] into Gilgit City and [[Gilgit District|adjoining areas]] in order to suppress the revolt.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O7GPWbu8XKgC&q=gilgit+shias+1988+killing&pg=PT24|title=Around Rakaposhi|last=Jones|first=Brian H.|publisher=Brian H Jones|year=2010|isbn=9780980810721|quote=Many Shias in the region feel that they have been discriminated against since 1948. They claim that the Pakistani government continually gives preferences to Sunnis in business, in official positions, and in the administration of justice...The situation deteriorated sharply during the 1980s under the presidency of the tyrannical Zia-ul Haq when there were many attacks on the Shia population. In one of the most notorious incidents, during May 1988 Sunni assailants destroyed Shia villages, forcing thousands of people to flee to Gilgit for refuge. Shia mosques were razed and about 100 people were killed}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/2003/feb/26raman.htm|title=The Karachi Attack: The Kashmir Link|last=Raman|first=B|date=26 February 2003|work=Rediiff News|access-date=31 December 2016|quote=A revolt by the Shias of Gilgit was ruthlessly suppressed by the Zia-ul Haq regime in 1988, killing hundreds of Shias. An armed group of tribals from Afghanistan and the North-West Frontier Province, led by Osama bin Laden, was inducted by the Pakistan Army into Gilgit and adjoining areas to suppress the revolt.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://herald.dawn.com/news/1153556|title=This Muharram, Gilgit gives peace a chance|last=Taimur|first=Shamil|date=12 October 2016|work=Herald|access-date=31 December 2016|quote=This led to violent clashes between the two sects. In 1988, after a brief calm of nearly four days, the military regime allegedly used certain militants along with local Sunnis to ‘teach a lesson’ to Shias, which led to hundreds of Shias and Sunnis being killed.}}</ref><ref name=":16">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PYquDAAAQBAJ&q=gilgit+shias+osama+bin+laden&pg=PA37|title=International Organizations and The Rise of ISIL: Global Responses to Human Security Threats|publisher=Routledge|year=2016|isbn=9781315536088|pages=37–38|quote=Several hundred Shiite civilians in Gilgit, Pakistan, were massacred in 1988 by Osama Bin Laden and his Taliban fighters (Raman, 2004).}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=19mPVOBZ_9YC&q=gilgit+shias+raped+1988&pg=PA134|title=The Making of Terrorism in Pakistan: Historical and Social Roots of Extremism|last=Murphy|first=Eamon|publisher=Routledge|year=2013|isbn=9780415565264|page=134|quote=Shias in the district of Gilgit were assaulted, killed and raped by an invading Sunni lashkar-armed militia-comprising thousands of jihadis from the North West Frontier Province.}}</ref> |
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From 1987 to 2007, "as many as 4,000 people are estimated to have died" in Shia-Sunni sectarian fighting in Pakistan".<ref name="csmonitor-rises-2007"/> Amongst the culprits blamed for the killing were Al-Qaeda working "with local sectarian groups" to kill what they perceive as Shia [[Apostasy in Islam|apostates]], and "foreign powers ... trying to sow discord."<ref name="csmonitor-rises-2007" /> Most violence took place in the largest province of [[Punjab region|Punjab]] and the country's commercial and financial capital, [[Karachi]].<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide" /> There were also conflagrations in the provinces of [[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]], [[Balochistan]] and [[Azad Kashmir]],<ref name="Pakistan's Shia-Sunni divide" /> with several hundreds of Shia killed in Balochistan killed since 2008.<ref name=hrw-baluchistan>{{cite web|title=Pakistan: Rampant Killings of Shia by Extremists|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/29/pakistan-rampant-killings-shia-extremists|publisher=Human Rights Watch|access-date=17 December 2014|date=30 June 2014}}</ref> Shia responded to the attacks creating a classic vicious cycle of "outrages and vengeance".<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, p. 166"/> |
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{{blockquote|Rivalry between [ [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]] and [[Tehreek-e-Jaferia Pakistan]] ] intensified when the SSP founder Haq Nawaz Jhangvi was killed in March 1990. The same year also witnessed the killing of an Iranian diplomat, Sadiq Ganji in Lahore. In 1997, Jhangvi's successor Zia-ur-Rehman Farooqi and 26 others were killed in a bomb blast at the Lahore Sessions Court. In the aftermath, Iranian diplomat Muhammad Ali Rahimi and six locals were killed in an attack on the Iranian Cultural Centre in Multan. On April 12, 2000 three hand grenades were lobbed at a gathering in a Shia mosque in Mulawali, the hometown of Syed Sajid Naqvi, killing 13 persons, including five members of the family of Syed Sajid Naqvi. The grenade was reportedly hurled from an adjacent Sunni mosque. Shortly thereafter, a TJP leader, Syed Farrukh Barjees was killed at Khanewal near Multan on April 26. On November 23, 2000, Anwar Ali Akhunzada, the central general secretary of TJP in Peshawar was assassinated by the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ).<ref name="IfCM-SATP"/>}} |
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One element of the violence was Shia "intellecticide" beginning in the 1990s: doctors, engineers, professors, businessmen, clerics, lawyers, civil servants and other men of learning were listed and then murdered<ref>Andreas Rieck, "[https://books.google.com/books?id=2HdeCwAAQBAJ&q=sectarian+vendetta The Shias of Pakistan]", pp. 249 – 263, Oxford University Press, (2016).</ref> "in a systematic attempt to remove Shias from positions of authority."<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, 166">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, (2006), p.166</ref> Between January and May 1997, 75 Shia community leaders were assassinated by Sunni terror groups.<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, 166"/> The mainstream media of Pakistan, either out of fear of jihadists or ideological orientation, did not disclose the religion of the victims, leading the public to think a systematic one-sided campaign was tit-for-tat, or even that Shias were the aggressors and the Deobandis the victims. It also prevented researchers and human rights activists from gathering the correct data and forming a realistic narrative.<ref name=":34">Abbas Zaidi, "[https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9781349949656 Covering Faith-Based Violence: Structure and Semantics of News Reporting in Pakistan]", in: J. Syed et al. (eds.), Faith-Based Violence and Deobandi Militancy in Pakistan, Palgrave Macmillan, (2016).</ref> Another tactic deployed that helped confuse the situation, at least for a while, was the changing of the names of terror groups. Instead of groups whose anti-Shia orientation was widely known, credit for attacks would be taken by an unfamiliar name. In the 1980s Tanzim-e-Ahlesunnat (TAS) had come to be known as [[Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan]], in the 1990s a new umbrella was set up under the name of [[Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]] (LeJ), whose members, though ostensibly a separate organization, were supported by SSP's lawyers and funding.<ref>Khaled Ahmad, "Sectarian War", p. 121, Oxford University Press, (2015).</ref> In 2003, SSP became Ahl-e Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ).<ref name="Stanford-mapping">{{cite web |title=MAPPING MILITANT ORGANIZATIONS. Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan |url=https://web.stanford.edu/group/mappingmilitants/cgi-bin/groups/view/147#:~:text=Name%20Changes%201%201985%3A%20Anjuman-e-Sipah-e-Sahaba.%20The%20group%27s%20original,Wal%20Jamaat.%20New%20name%20after%20MIP%20was%20banned. |website=Stanford University |access-date=10 August 2023}}</ref> |
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By the mid-1990s early financial support Shia activism in Pakistan from the revolutionary government of Iran had "dried up".<ref name="Nasr, ''Shia Revival'', 2006, p. 167">Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'' (Norton), 2006, p. 167</ref> |
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Also in the 1990s, Sunni extremists "began to demand" that Shia be declared a "non-Muslim minority", (as the [[Ahmadiyya]] had been), so that they were forbidden from calling their places of worship mosques and were subject to laws governing non-Muslims.<ref>Nasr, Vali, ''The Shia Revival'', Norton, 2006, pp. 167-8</ref> |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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|+Faith-based violence against Shias in post 9/11 Pakistan<ref name=lubpak-database-2921>{{cite web |date=2022-03-17 |title=Shia Genocide Database: A detailed account of Shia killings in Pakistan from 1955 to 30th June 2021 – by Abdul Nishapuri – LUBP |url=https://lubpak.net/archives/132675 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220317145137/https://lubpak.net/archives/132675 |archive-date=2022-03-17 |access-date=2022-04-06 }}</ref> |
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!Year |
|||
!Bomb Blasts |
|||
!Firing Incidents |
|||
!Urban |
|||
!Rural |
|||
!Killed |
|||
!Injured |
|||
|- |
|||
|2001 |
|||
|0 |
|||
|7 |
|||
|6 |
|||
|1 |
|||
|31 |
|||
|6 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2002 |
|||
|0 |
|||
|6 |
|||
|6 |
|||
|0 |
|||
|29 |
|||
|47 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2003 |
|||
|1 |
|||
|4 |
|||
|5 |
|||
|0 |
|||
|83 |
|||
|68 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2004 |
|||
|5 |
|||
|4 |
|||
|9 |
|||
|0 |
|||
|130 |
|||
|250 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2005 |
|||
|4 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|4 |
|||
|91 |
|||
|122 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2006 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|3 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|3 |
|||
|116 |
|||
|unknown |
|||
|- |
|||
|2007 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|11 |
|||
|4 |
|||
|9 |
|||
|442 |
|||
|423 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2008 |
|||
|6 |
|||
|10 |
|||
|7 |
|||
|9 |
|||
|416 |
|||
|453 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2009 |
|||
|8 |
|||
|27 |
|||
|19 |
|||
|16 |
|||
|381 |
|||
|593 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2010 |
|||
|7 |
|||
|16 |
|||
|16 |
|||
|7 |
|||
|322 |
|||
|639 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2011 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|33 |
|||
|26 |
|||
|9 |
|||
|203 |
|||
|156 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2012 |
|||
|11 |
|||
|310 |
|||
|247 |
|||
|74 |
|||
|630 |
|||
|616 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2013 |
|||
|20 |
|||
|283 |
|||
|269 |
|||
|34 |
|||
|1222 |
|||
|2256 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2014 |
|||
|7 |
|||
|262 |
|||
|251 |
|||
|18 |
|||
|361 |
|||
|275 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2015 |
|||
|11 |
|||
|99 |
|||
|100 |
|||
|10 |
|||
|369 |
|||
|400 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2016 |
|||
|2 |
|||
|54 |
|||
|49 |
|||
|7 |
|||
|65 |
|||
|207 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2017 |
|||
|4 |
|||
|34 |
|||
|26 |
|||
|12 |
|||
|308 |
|||
|133 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2018 |
|||
|1 |
|||
|28 |
|||
|24 |
|||
|5 |
|||
|58 |
|||
|50 |
|||
|- |
|||
|2019 |
|||
|2+ |
|||
|15+ |
|||
|16+ |
|||
|1+ |
|||
|38+ |
|||
|9+ |
|||
|} |
|||
The incidents of violence in cities occur more often than in rural areas. This is because the large numbers of people migrating from rural areas to the city, seek refuge in religious organisations to fight the urban culture and to look for new friends of similar rural mindset.<ref>Anatol Lieven, "Pakistan: A Hard Country", pp. 132 – 134, Penguin Books, (2012).</ref> |
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[[File:Hazaras demonstration Islamabad.jpg|thumb|Protest in Islamabad against the [[persecution of Hazaras]], 2013]] |
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In 2013, in one city alone, the [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]] capital of [[Quetta]], there were a series of bombings mostly targeting Shia: in [[January 2013 Pakistan bombings|January]] (130 killed, 270 injured), [[February 2013 Quetta bombing|February]] (91 killed, 190 injured), several in [[June 2013 Quetta attacks|June]] (26 killed, dozens injured), and [[August 2013 Quetta bombing|August]] (37 killed, 50+ injured). |
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====Post-2015 era==== |
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According to International Crisis Group "a new era of sectarian conflict" started around 2015. At this point action by the police "decimated" the leadership of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, and its sectarian attacks, (i.e. attacks on Shia), declined.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> However, in the wake of LeJ's decline "two distinct new forces" rose: |
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*the [[Islamic State – Khorasan Province|Islamic State's "Khorasan Province"]] (ISKP), and |
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*the hardline political party and violent protest movement [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan]] (aka Labbaik). |
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The ISKP has picked up the slack of LeJ's terror, with many of LeJ's foot soldiers joining ISKP despite the fact that their background is [[Deobandi]] and ISKP follows [[Salafi]] in doctrine.<ref name="NEoSViP-2022-i"/> |
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Labbaik focused primarily on blasphemy, and attacks on not only alleged blasphemers but anyone who defended them. In August 2020, about 42 blasphemy cases were registered, primarily targeting Shias, including a three-year-old Shia child.<ref name="Diplomat"/> |
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In July 2020, the [[Punjab Legislative Assembly]] of Pakistan passed the ''Tahaffuz-e-Bunyad-e-Islam'' (Protection of Foundation of Islam) Bill, that heightened Sunni-Shia sectarian tensions. The bill made it mandatory for all Pakistani Muslims to revere the historical Muslim figures esteemed by Sunni Muslims, despite the fact that Shia consider some of them usurpers. The passing of the bill sparked outrage among the Shia clergy that the bill was contrary to Shia beliefs.<ref name="Diplomat">{{cite web |last= Shahid|first= Kunwar Khuldune|date= 17 September 2020|title=What Role Does the State Play in Pakistan's Anti-Shia Hysteria?|url=https://thediplomat.com/2020/09/what-role-does-the-state-play-in-pakistans-anti-shia-hysteria/|publisher=THe Diplomat|access-date=21 October 2020}}</ref> |
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After Shia clergy made disparaging remarks against historical Islamic figures, televised during the Shia [[Ashura]] procession, (Ashura commemorates the [[Battle of Karbala]], which caused the schism in Islam), Sunni groups proclaimed the remarks and any like them intolerable.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.arabnews.com/node/1732981/world| title = Anti-Shiite protest rattles Pakistan's Karachi {{!}} Arab News| date = 11 September 2020}}</ref> |
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Thousands of Pakistanis marched at an anti-Shia protest in Karachi, the country's financial hub, on 11 September 2020.<ref name="Daily Times Pakistan">{{cite news |last= Ali|first= Noor Ul Ain|date= 12 September 2020|title=Anti-Shiite protest rattles Karachi|url=https://dailytimes.com.pk/665868/anti-shiite-protest-rattles-karachi/| newspaper=Daily Times Pakistan}}</ref> |
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Labaik's chief in Karachi reportedly urged his followers to behead people |
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who "blasphemed" against historical figures revered among Sunnis.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/><ref>Pakistan: Shia Muslims", Home Office, UK Government, July 2021</ref> |
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Other 21st century sectarian issues in Pakistan involving Shia include pressure on the government by Shia activists for the release of "several hundred" Shia thought to have been subject to [[enforced disappearance]]. These individuals are often subject to "physical, but especially psychological, torture", kept in dark cells and incommunicado from loved ones, "some are believed to have died in detention".<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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At least 61 people were killed and another 196 injured when [[2022 Peshawar mosque attack|a Shia mosque in Peshawar was attacked by a suicide bomber]] on 4 March 2022. Islamic State (ISKP) claimed responsibility.<ref name="Saifi-CNN-2022">{{cite news |last1=Saifi |first1=Sophia |last2=Mehsud |first2=Saleem |title=ISIS claims responsibility for blast killing dozens at Shia mosque in Pakistan's Peshawar |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/04/asia/pakistan-peshawar-blast-intl/index.html |access-date=30 August 2023 |work=CNN |date=5 March 2022}}</ref> |
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====Other Shi'i sects==== |
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There are other Shi'i sect in Pakistan—including [[Isma'ilism|Ismaili]]s and [[Dawoodi Bohra|Bohra]]s—but they have not been as frequently targeted by extremists as the Twelvers, because of their smaller numbers, and tendency to be more affluent and live in close-knit communities.<ref name="bus-BBC-2015"/> Nevertheless, in May 2015 gunmen boarded a bus carrying [[Isma'ilism|Ismaili Shia]] (there are approximately 500,000 in Pakistan) and massacred at least 45.<ref name="bus-BBC-2015"/> In other attacks, seven members of the Bohra sect (of which there are less than 100,000 in Pakistan) were killed in September 2012 from two terrorist blasts in a predominantly Bohra market in Karachi. In 2018, two worshipers were killed when another bomb detonated outside a Bohra mosque moments after an evening prayer service.<ref name="Ahmad-NYT-2017">{{cite news |last1=Ahmad |first1=Meher |title=KARACHI JOURNAL Daring to Celebrate, Sect in Pakistan Prepares for Honored Guest |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/20/world/asia/pakistan-muharram.html |access-date=9 August 2023 |agency=New York Times |date=20 September 2017}}</ref> |
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===Ahmadis=== |
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{{main|Persecution of Ahmadis}} |
{{main|Persecution of Ahmadis}} |
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The freedom of religion in Pakistan of [[Ahmadiyya]], i.e. members of the Ahmadi Islamic sect, has been curtailed by a series of ordinances, acts and constitutional amendments, including the [[Second Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan]] and [[Ordinance XX]]. |
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[[Ahmadi Muslims]] are declared as 'Non-Muslims' by the Bhutto government which gave into Sunni extremist pressure in 1974 and further deprived of their basic religious rights in the [[Second Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan]] and [[Ordinance XX]] which has led to thousands of cases of Ahmadis charged with various offences for alleged blasphemy and further fueled the Sectarian tensions. Many thousands of Ahmadis were killed in [[1953 Lahore riots]], [[1974 Anti-Ahmadiyya riots]] and the [[May 2010 attacks on Ahmadi mosques in Lahore]]. The 1953 riots were the largest killings of [[Ahmadis]]. |
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Ahmadis were declared to be 'Non-Muslims' by the government of [[Zulfikar Ali Bhutto]] in 1974 under pressure from conservative Sunnis, and this has led to thousands of cases of Ahmadis being charged with various offences for alleged blasphemy and further fueled the sectarian tensions which exist in Pakistan. |
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In 2014, a prominent Canadian national surgeon, Dr. Mehdi Ali Qamar was killed in front of his family while on a humanitarian visit to Pakistan, one of 137 other Ahmadis killed in Pakistan from 2010-2014.<ref>{{cite news|last1=News|first1=Cbc|title=Photo Galleries Slain doctor Mehdi Ali Qamar was 'servant of humanity'|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/slain-doctor-mehdi-ali-qamar-was-servant-of-humanity-1.2664786|publisher=CBC NEws}}</ref> |
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Some of the worst attacks on Ahmadis have been the |
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*[[1953 Lahore riots]], where demonstrations in the city of Lahore in February 1953, escalating into looting, arson and the murder of somewhere between 200<ref name=kadir-139>{{cite book|author1=Ali Kadir|title=Religion in Times of Crisis|editor=Gladys Ganiel|publisher=Brill|page=139|access-date=30 October 2014|chapter=Parliamentary Heretization of Ahmadiyya in Pakistan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1VMMBAAAQBAJ|isbn=9789004277793|date=4 July 2014}}</ref> and 2000 Ahmadis,<ref name=country-217>{{cite book|editor1-last=Blood|editor1-first=Peter R.|title=Pakistan: A Country Study|publisher=Diane Publishing Company|page=217|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DRMTO7mn7hIC&dq=ahmadiyya+ji&pg=PA217|access-date=30 October 2014|quote=In order to rid the community of what it considered to be deviant behavior, the JI waged a campaign in 1953 against the Ahmadiyya community in Pakistan that resulted in some 2,000 deaths, brought on martial law rule in Punjab, ...|isbn=9780788136313|date=December 1996}}</ref> and displacement of thousands more. |
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*[[1974 Anti-Ahmadiyya riots]], which involving killing, torture, looting, robbery, and burning of Ahmad and their homes, businesses and mosques in localities throughout Pakistan from late May to early September 1974. Following the riots authorities reacted not with a clampdown on the perpetrators but by passing an amendment to the constitution defining Ahmadis as 'non-Muslim',<ref>{{cite web |title=CONSTITUTION (SECOND AMENDMENT) ACT, 1974 President's Assent Received: 17th September 1974 Gazette of Pakistan, Extraordinary, Part I, 21st September 1974 |url=https://pakistani.org/pakistan/constitution/amendments/2amendment.html |website=pakistani.org |access-date=21 July 2023}}</ref> a demand of the rioters which would lead to some Ahmadis losing their jobs or making it difficult to find employment.<ref name="Weinraub-NYT-1974">{{cite news |last1=Weinraub |first1=Bernard |title=Bhutto Strengthening His Grip on a Troubled Pakistan |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/10/19/archives/bhutto-strengthening-his-grip-on-a-troubled-pakistan-politically.html?auth=login-google1tap&login=google1tap |access-date=22 July 2023 |agency=New York Times |date=19 October 1974}}</ref> |
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*[[May 2010 attacks on Ahmadi mosques in Lahore|May 2010 attacks on Ahmadi mosques]], where 86 people were killed, and more than 100 injured in [[Lahore]], when an Ahmadi mosque and religious center were attacked by gunmen during Friday prayers on 28 May 2010.<ref name="Lawton-R&E-2015">{{cite web |last1=Lawton |first1=Kim |title=Can Pakistan Declare Ahmadis Non-Muslim? |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/blog/can-pakistan-declare-ahmadis-non-muslim/ |website=PBS |publisher=Religion and Ethics Newsweekly |access-date=22 July 2023 |date=14 September 2015}}</ref> |
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In 2014, a prominent Canadian national surgeon, Dr. Mehdi Ali Qamar was killed in front of his family while he was on a humanitarian visit to Pakistan, one of 137 other Ahmadis who were killed in Pakistan from 2010 to 2014.<ref>{{cite news|title=Photo Galleries Slain doctor Mehdi Ali Qamar was 'servant of humanity'|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/slain-doctor-mehdi-ali-qamar-was-servant-of-humanity-1.2664786|publisher=CBC News|access-date=9 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140608015606/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/slain-doctor-mehdi-ali-qamar-was-servant-of-humanity-1.2664786|archive-date=8 June 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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Following the 2010 Lahore massacre, [[United Nations]] Secretary-General [[Ban Ki-moon]], said "Members of this religious community have faced continuous threats, discrimination and violent attacks in Pakistan. There is a real risk that similar violence might happen again unless advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence is adequately addressed. The Government must take every step to ensure the security of members of all religious minorities and their places of worship so as to prevent any recurrence of today's dreadful incident." Ban's spokesperson expressed condemndation and extended his condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government.<ref name="UN News Centre">{{cite web|url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2010/05/340082-un-experts-urge-pakistan-act-after-religious-minority-members-killed|title=UN experts urge Pakistan to act after religious minority members killed|date=28 May 2010|website=UN News|access-date=18 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418191258/https://news.un.org/en/story/2010/05/340082-un-experts-urge-pakistan-act-after-religious-minority-members-killed|archive-date=18 April 2019|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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===Zikris=== |
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{{main|Zikri}} |
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Zikri have been victims of discrimination, harassment, forced conversions, attempts to have them declared non-Muslims, and killings. These attacks have flared up from time to time<ref name="Williams-2020-141">{{Cite book |last=Williams |first=Victoria |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3_zRDwAAQBAJ&dq=zikris&pg=PA141 |title=Indigenous Peoples: An Encyclopedia of Culture, History, and Threats to Survival |publisher=ABC_CLIO |year=2020 |isbn=9781440861185 |pages=141}}</ref>{{notetag|"The Zikri question has become one of the leading issues during last few years which mobilized enormous resistance by the religious groups, particularly the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), in Balochistan" <ref>Mansoor Akbar Kundi, ''Balochistan, a socio-cultural and political analysis'', Qasim Printers, 1993, p. 83.</ref><ref name="dnaindia.com">{{cite news |date=13 October 2014 |title=Human Rights Commission of Pakistan worried over mass migration of Hindus from Balochistan |work=DNA |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-human-rights-commission-of-pakistan-worried-over-mass-migration-of-hindus-from-balochistan-2025679 |access-date=23 July 2019}}</ref><ref name="Epaper">{{cite web |title=Meanwhile, in Balochistan |url=http://epaper.dawn.com/print-textview.php?StoryImage=08_09_2014_008_006 |access-date=3 January 2015 |publisher=Epaper.dawn.com |archive-date=5 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240405161255/https://epaper.dawn.com/print-textview.php?StoryImage=08_09_2014_008_006 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="The Shia Post">{{cite web |title=Pro-Taliban takfiris hail ISIS: Zikri-Balochs, Hindus threatened to death |url=http://en.shiapost.com/2014/08/25/pro-taliban-takfiris-hails-isis-baloch-zikris-hindus-threatened-to-death/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903092159/http://en.shiapost.com/2014/08/25/pro-taliban-takfiris-hails-isis-baloch-zikris-hindus-threatened-to-death/ |archive-date=3 September 2014 |access-date=3 January 2015 |work=The Shia Post}}</ref><ref name="Aljazeera.com">{{cite web |title=Gunmen target minority sect in Pakistan |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/08/gunmen-target-minority-sect-pakistan-20148299211109311.html |access-date=3 January 2015 |publisher=Aljazeera.com}}</ref>}} since before the founding of Pakistan.<ref name=Baloch-2015>{{cite book |last1=Baloch |first1=Inayatullah |title=Oxford in Pakistan Readings in Sociology and Social Anthropology |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1154575 |access-date=9 August 2023 |chapter=Zikris of Balochistan|date=2 January 2015 }} quoted in {{cite news |title=Zikris under attack in Balochistan |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1154575 |access-date=9 August 2023 |agency=Dawn |date=2 January 2015}}</ref> Recent attacks and insecurity have led sizable numbers of Zikri (like other minorities) to flee from Balochistan to "safer cities in Pakistan like Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad".<ref name=Baloch-Responsible-2014>{{cite news |last1=Baloch |first1=Kiyya |title=Who Is Responsible for Persecuting Pakistan's Minorities? Islamists in Balochistan are targeting minorities, yet NGOs are beginning to blame the government too. |url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/11/who-is-responsible-for-persecuting-pakistans-minorities/ |access-date=8 August 2023 |agency=The Diplomat |date=12 November 2014}}</ref> |
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===Non-Muslims=== |
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Following the 2010 Lahore massacre, [[United Nations]] Secretary-General [[Ban Ki-moon]], said "Members of this religious community have faced continuous threats, discrimination and violent attacks in Pakistan. There is a real risk that similar violence might happen again unless advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence is adequately addressed. The Government must take every step to ensure the security of members of all religious minorities and their places of worship so as to prevent any recurrence of today's dreadful incident." Ban's spokesperson expressed condemndation and extended his condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government.<ref name= "UN News Centre">[https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=34849&Cr=&Cr1= UN News Centre]</ref> |
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The percentage of Pakistan's non-Muslim population has declined from 23% at the time of independence to 3% as of 2017, a trend blamed by some (Farahnaz Ispahani) on General Zia's coup in 1977 which "accelerated the pace toward intolerance of non-Sunni" Muslims.<ref name="Ispahani -2017">{{cite web |last1=Ispahani |first1=Farahnaz |title=Purifying the Land of the Pure: A History of Pakistan's Religious Minorities |url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/purifying-the-land-the-pure-history-pakistans-religious-minorities |website=Wilson Center |access-date=9 August 2023 |date=15 February 2017}}</ref> |
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==Christians== |
====Christians==== |
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{{Main|Christians in Pakistan#Islamist violence against Christians}} |
{{Main|Christians in Pakistan#Islamist violence against Christians}} |
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[[File:Christians Demonstration Pakistan.jpg|thumb|Protest against the killing of Christians in Pakistan]] |
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A Christian church in Islamabad was attacked after 11 September 2001, and some Americans were among the dead. |
A Christian church in Islamabad was attacked after 11 September 2001, and some Americans were among the dead. |
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On 22 September 2013, a twin [[suicide bomb attack]] took place at [[All Saints Church, Peshawar|All Saints Church]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/suicide-bombers-attack-historic-church-in-peshawar-60-killed_878368.html|title=Suicide bombers attack historic church in Peshawar, 60 killed|date=22 September 2013|work=[[Zee News]]| |
On 22 September 2013, a twin [[suicide bomb attack]] took place at [[All Saints Church, Peshawar|All Saints Church]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/suicide-bombers-attack-historic-church-in-peshawar-60-killed_878368.html|title=Suicide bombers attack historic church in Peshawar, 60 killed|date=22 September 2013|work=[[Zee News]]|access-date=22 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002121637/http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/suicide-bombers-attack-historic-church-in-peshawar-60-killed_878368.html|archive-date=2 October 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> in [[Peshawar]], [[Pakistan]], in which 127 people were killed and over 250 injured.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ghrd.org/news/article/news/detail/News/the-september-attack-on-all-saints-church-in-peshawar/|title=GHRD: Article|work=Global Human Rights Defense|access-date=6 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106162430/http://www.ghrd.org/news/article/news/detail/News/the-september-attack-on-all-saints-church-in-peshawar/|archive-date=6 November 2014|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-24193734|title=40 die in Pakistan bombing|work=BBC News|date=22 September 2013|access-date=22 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130923061035/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-24193734|archive-date=23 September 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://dawn.com/news/1044668/twin-church-blasts-claims-66-lives-in-peshawar|title=Twin church blasts claims 66 lives in Peshawar|work=Dawn|date=22 September 2013|access-date=22 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130925031655/http://www.dawn.com/news/1044668/twin-church-blasts-claims-66-lives-in-peshawar|archive-date=25 September 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="latimes">{{cite web|url=http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-suicide-bomber-pakistan-20130922,0,923285.story|title=Suicide bomb attack kills 60 at Pakistan church|date=22 September 2013|work=[[Associated Press]] via [[The Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=22 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130922131657/http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-suicide-bomber-pakistan-20130922,0,923285.story|archive-date=22 September 2013|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> On [[Lahore church bombings|15 March 2015]], two blasts took place at [[Roman Catholicism in Pakistan|Roman Catholic Church]] and Christ Church during [[Sunday service]] at [[Youhanabad]] town of [[Lahore]].<ref name="geo.tv">{{cite news|url=http://www.geo.tv/article-178233-Two-blasts-at-Lahore-churches-claim-15-lives-|title=Two blasts at Lahore churches claim 15 lives – PAKISTAN – geo.tv|date=15 March 2015|work=geo.tv|access-date=15 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150725032704/http://www.geo.tv/article-178233-Two-blasts-at-Lahore-churches-claim-15-lives-|archive-date=25 July 2015|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> At least 15 people were killed and seventy were wounded in the attacks.<ref name="agencies-imrangabol-nadeemhaider-waseemriaz-abbashaider-akbarali1">{{cite web|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1169713|title=15 killed in Taliban attack on Lahore churches|author=Agencies – Imran Gabol – Nadeem Haider – Waseem Riaz – Abbas Haider – Akbar Ali|work=dawn.com|date=15 March 2015 |access-date=15 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150730111345/http://www.dawn.com/news/1169713|archive-date=30 July 2015|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/03/lahore-churches-hit-deadly-bomb-attacks-150315074103093.html|title=Worshippers killed in Pakistan church bombings|work=aljazeera.com|access-date=15 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150315144347/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/03/lahore-churches-hit-deadly-bomb-attacks-150315074103093.html|archive-date=15 March 2015|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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==Hindus== |
====Hindus==== |
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[[File:Krishan_Mandir,_Kallar.JPG|right|thumb|Krishan Mandir, Kallar, Pakistan]] |
[[File:Krishan_Mandir,_Kallar.JPG|right|thumb|Krishan Mandir, Kallar, Pakistan]] |
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{{further|Anti-Hinduism in Pakistan|Persecution of Hindus in Pakistan}} Hindus in Pakistan |
{{further|Anti-Hinduism in Pakistan|Persecution of Hindus in Pakistan|2014 Larkana temple attack|2019 Ghotki riots|2020 Karak temple attack}} Hindus in Pakistan have faced persecution due to their religious beliefs. Because of this, some of them choose to take refuge in next-door India.<ref name="bbc2007030222">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6367773.stm|title=Hindus feel the heat in Pakistan|last=Sohail|first=Riaz|date=2 March 2007|work=[[BBC]]|quote=But many Hindu families who stayed in Pakistan after partition have already lost faith and migrated to India.|access-date=22 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100814193916/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6367773.stm|archive-date=14 August 2010|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/gujarat-114-pakistanis-are-indian-citizens-now/articleshow/59695975.cms|title=Gujarat: 114 Pakistanis are Indian citizens now|access-date=24 July 2017|work=Ahmedabad Mirror}}</ref> According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan data, just around 1000 Hindu families fled to India in 2013,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1206092|title=Hindu refugees from Pakistan encounter suspicion and indifference in India|last=Rizvi|first=Uzair Hasan|date=10 September 2015|work=Dawn|access-date=3 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170214025324/http://www.dawn.com/news/1206092|archive-date=14 February 2017|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and according to MP Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, as of May 2014, approximately 5000 Hindus are migrating from Pakistan to India every year.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1105830|title=5,000 Hindus migrating to India every year, NA told|last=Haider|first=Irfan|date=13 May 2014|access-date=2016-01-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161229174650/http://www.dawn.com/news/1105830|archive-date=29 December 2016|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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===== Persecution ===== |
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Those Pakistani Hindus who have fled to India allege that Hindu girls are sexually harassed in Pakistani schools, adding that Hindu students are made to read the [[Quran]] and that their religious practices are mocked, which is rampant among Muslim majority nations.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-34645370|title=Why Pakistani Hindus leave their homes for India - BBC News|date=28 October 2015|work=BBC News|language=en-GB|accessdate=6 May 2016}}</ref> The Indian government is planning to issue [[Aadhaar|Aadhaar cards]] and [[Permanent account number|PAN cards]] to Pakistani Hindu refugees, and simplifying the process by which they can acquire Indian citizenship.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-modi-government-to-let-pakistani-hindus-register-as-citizens-for-as-low-as-rs-100-2203007|title=Modi government to let Pakistani Hindus register as citizens for as low as Rs 100 {{!}} Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis|date=17 April 2016|work=[[Daily News and Analysis]]|language=en-US|accessdate=6 May 2016}}</ref> |
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Those Pakistani Hindus who have fled to India allege that Hindu girls are sexually harassed in Pakistani schools, adding that Hindu students are made to read the [[Quran]] and that their religious practices are mocked.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-34645370|title=Why Pakistani Hindus leave their homes for India – BBC News|date=28 October 2015|work=BBC News|language=en-GB|access-date=6 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160327095333/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-34645370|archive-date=27 March 2016|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> {{notetag|The Indian government is planning to issue [[Aadhaar|Aadhaar cards]] and [[Permanent account number|PAN cards]] to Pakistani Hindu refugees, and simplifying the process by which they can acquire Indian citizenship.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-modi-government-to-let-pakistani-hindus-register-as-citizens-for-as-low-as-rs-100-2203007|title=Modi government to let Pakistani Hindus register as citizens for as low as Rs 100 {{!}} Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis|date=17 April 2016|work=[[Daily News and Analysis]]|language=en-US|access-date=6 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160516194111/http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-modi-government-to-let-pakistani-hindus-register-as-citizens-for-as-low-as-rs-100-2203007|archive-date=16 May 2016|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref>}} |
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[[File:Pool_at_Katas.jpg|right|thumb|View from top of the temple, [[Katas Raj Temples|Katas]], Pakistan]] |
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=== Persecution === |
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{{notetag|Separate electorates for Hindus and Christians were established in 1985 – a policy originally proposed by Islamist leader [[Abul A'la Maududi]]. Christian and Hindu leaders complained that they felt excluded from the county's political process, but the policy had strong support from Islamists.<ref name="OBJ-312">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/pakistaneyeofsto00benn|url-access=registration|quote=separate electorates for minorities in pakistan.|title=Pakistan: Eye of the Storm|date=2002|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=0300101473|page=[https://archive.org/details/pakistaneyeofsto00benn/page/31 31]|last1=Jones|first1=Owen Bennett|access-date=9 December 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref>}} |
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[[File:Pool_at_Katas.jpg|right|thumb|View from top of the temple, Katas, Pakistan]] |
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Separate electorates for Hindus and Christians were established in 1985 – a policy originally proposed by Islamist leader [[Abul A'la Maududi]]. Christian and Hindu leaders complained that they felt excluded from the county's political process, but the policy had strong support from Islamists.<ref name="OBJ-312"/> |
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In the aftermath of the [[Demolition of the Babri Masjid|Babri Masjid demolition]] Pakistani Hindus faced riots. Mobs attacked five Hindu temples in |
In the aftermath of the [[Demolition of the Babri Masjid|Babri Masjid demolition]] by Hindus in India, Pakistani Hindus faced riots. Mobs attacked five Hindu temples in Karachi and set fire to 25 temples in towns across the province of [[Sindh]]. Shops owned by Hindus were also attacked in [[Sukkur]]. Hindu homes and temples were also attacked in [[Quetta]].<ref name="A2">{{cite news|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE2DD113BF93BA35751C1A964958260&sec=&spon=|title=Pakistanis Attack 30 Hindu Temples|date=1992-12-07|work=The New York Times|quote=Muslims attacked more than 30 Hindu temples across Pakistan today, and the Government of this overwhelmingly Muslim nation closed offices and schools for a day to protest the destruction of a mosque in India.|access-date=2011-04-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080417171846/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE2DD113BF93BA35751C1A964958260&sec=&spon=|archive-date=17 April 2008|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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In 2005, 32 Hindus were killed by firing from the government side near [[Akbar Bugti|Nawab Akbar Bugti]]'s residence during bloody clashes between Bugti tribesmen and paramilitary forces in [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]]. The firing left the Hindu residential locality near Bugti's residence badly hit.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4372789.stm|title=Journalists find Balochistan 'war zone'|last=Abbas|first=Zaffar|date=22 March 2005|work=BBC|quote=The Hindu residential locality that is close to Mr Bugti's fortress-like house was particularly badly hit. Mr Bugti says 32 Hindus were killed by firing from the government side in exchanges that followed an attack on a government convoy last Thursday.|access-date=26 December 2016| |
In 2005, 32 Hindus were killed by firing from the government side near [[Akbar Bugti|Nawab Akbar Bugti]]'s residence during bloody clashes between Bugti tribesmen and paramilitary forces in [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]]. The firing left the Hindu residential locality near Bugti's residence badly hit.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4372789.stm|title=Journalists find Balochistan 'war zone'|last=Abbas|first=Zaffar|date=22 March 2005|work=BBC|quote=The Hindu residential locality that is close to Mr Bugti's fortress-like house was particularly badly hit. Mr Bugti says 32 Hindus were killed by firing from the government side in exchanges that followed an attack on a government convoy last Thursday.|access-date=26 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130609024414/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4372789.stm|archive-date=9 June 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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The rise of [[Taliban]] insurgency in Pakistan has been an influential and increasing factor in the persecution of and [[discrimination against religious minorities in Pakistan]], such as |
The rise of [[Taliban]] insurgency in Pakistan has been an influential and increasing factor in the persecution of and [[discrimination against religious minorities in Pakistan]], such as Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, and other minorities.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/16/world/asia/militants-in-pakistan-make-inroads-in-the-diverse-and-tolerant-south.html|title=Extremists Make Inroads in Pakistan's Diverse South|first1=Saba|last1=Imtiaz|first2=Declan|last2=Walsh|date=15 July 2014|access-date=18 April 2019|website=[[The New York Times]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418191258/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/16/world/asia/militants-in-pakistan-make-inroads-in-the-diverse-and-tolerant-south.html|archive-date=18 April 2019|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> It is said that there is persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/persecution-of-religious-minorities-in-pakistan_884708.html|title=Persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan|date=21 October 2013|website=Zee news|publisher=Zee Media Corporation Ltd.|access-date=18 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222142457/http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/persecution-of-religious-minorities-in-pakistan_884708.html|archive-date=22 February 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="usdep">{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2006/71443.htm|title=Pakistan|website=U.S. Department of State|access-date=18 April 2019|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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In July 2010, around 60 members of the minority Hindu community in [[Karachi]] were attacked and evicted from their homes following an incident of a [[Dalit]] Hindu youth drinking water from a tap near an Islamic |
In July 2010, around 60 members of the minority Hindu community in [[Karachi]] were attacked and evicted from their homes following an incident of a [[Dalit]] Hindu youth drinking water from a tap near an Islamic mosque.<ref name="thehindu1">{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article512346.ece|title=Hindus attacked, evicted from their homes in Pak's Sindh|date=12 July 2010|work=[[The Hindu]]|author=Press Trust of India|access-date=14 July 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100715081051/http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article512346.ece|archive-date=15 July 2010|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.oneindia.in/2010/07/13/hindus-in-sindh-attacked-pakistan.html|title=Hindus attacked in Pakistan|date=13 July 2010|newspaper=[[Oneindia.in]]|access-date=3 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230233830/http://news.oneindia.in/2010/07/13/hindus-in-sindh-attacked-pakistan.html|archive-date=30 December 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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In January 2014, a policeman standing guard outside a Hindu temple at Peshawar was gunned down.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsweekpakistan.com/hindu-temple-guard-gunned-down-in-peshawar|title=Hindu temple guard gunned down in Peshawar|date=26 January 2014|website=Newsweek Pakistan|publisher=AG Publications (Private) Limited.| |
In January 2014, a policeman standing guard outside a Hindu temple at Peshawar was gunned down.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsweekpakistan.com/hindu-temple-guard-gunned-down-in-peshawar|title=Hindu temple guard gunned down in Peshawar|date=26 January 2014|website=Newsweek Pakistan|publisher=AG Publications (Private) Limited.|access-date=31 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140130051030/http://newsweekpakistan.com/hindu-temple-guard-gunned-down-in-peshawar/|archive-date=30 January 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Pakistan's Supreme Court has sought a report from the government on its efforts to ensure access for the minority Hindu community to temples – the Karachi bench of the apex court was hearing applications against the alleged denial of access to the members of the minority community.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/slide-show/slide-show-1-hindus-in-pakistan-denied-access-to-temples/20140227.htm#2|title=Are Hindus in Pakistan being denied access to temples?|date=27 February 2014|website=Rediff.com|publisher=PTI (Press Trust Of India)|access-date=3 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302070546/http://www.rediff.com/news/slide-show/slide-show-1-hindus-in-pakistan-denied-access-to-temples/20140227.htm#2|archive-date=2 March 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/676049/hindus-being-denied-access-to-temple-sc-questions-authorities|title=Hindus being denied access to temple, SC questions authorities|last=Sahoutara|first=Naeem|date=26 February 2014|publisher=The Express Tribune News Network|access-date=3 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302051453/http://tribune.com.pk/story/676049/hindus-being-denied-access-to-temple-sc-questions-authorities/|archive-date=2 March 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thestatesman.net/news/41450-pak-sc-seeks-report-on-denial-of-access-to-hindu-temple.html|title=Pak SC seeks report on denial of access to Hindu temple|date=26 February 2014|publisher=Press Trust of India|access-date=3 March 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140303211814/http://www.thestatesman.net/news/41450-pak-sc-seeks-report-on-denial-of-access-to-hindu-temple.html|archive-date=3 March 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
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====Sikhs==== |
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The Sikh community of Pakistan has faced persecution in the form of targeted killings, forced conversions and denied opportunities.<ref name="India Today"/><ref name="Reuters"/><ref name="Dawn">{{cite news |date=17 April 2015|title=Pakistan's dwindling Sikh community wants improved security|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1176521/pakistans-dwindling-sikh-community-wants-improved-security|newspaper=Dawn}}</ref> Sikhs have also been forced to pay the discriminatory ''[[jizya]]'' tax on non-Muslims. (This traditional Islamic tax was levied on non-Muslims allowing them to continue practicing their faith, but functioning as [[Protection racket]] extortion and is levied not by the state of Pakistan but by non-state actors, specifically extremist militants connected with the Taliban.) According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, "several reports have been received of Sikhs being killed in public places for not paying this protection fee."<ref name="RefWorld">{{cite web |url=https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/57fb91e54.pdf |title=Minorities under attack: Faith-based discrimination and violence in Pakistan|publisher=FIDH - International Federation for Human Rights; Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) |website=RefWorld |page=17 }}</ref> |
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One result has been the emigration of a large fraction of Pakistan's Sikh population to safer countries, particularly India.<ref name="Reuters-Sikhs">{{cite news |last= Hassan|first= Syed Raza|date=3 October 2014|title=In historic homeland, Pakistan's Sikhs live under constant threat|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-pakistan-sikh-idUKKCN0HS0U020141003|newspaper=Reuters}}</ref><ref name="UCANews">{{cite news |last= Chaudhry|first= Kamran|date=31 December 2018|title=Sikhs in Pakistan fear for lives as persecution rages on|url=https://www.ucanews.com/news/sikhs-in-pakistan-fear-for-lives-as-persecution-rages-on/84093#|newspaper=UCANews}}</ref> According to human rights campaigners quoted in ''[[India Today]]'', the population of Sikhs in Pakistan has dropped drastically, from 2 million in 1947 to around 40,000 in 2002 and 8,000 in 2019.<ref name="India Today">{{cite news |last= Singh|first= Harmeet Shah|date=31 August 2019|title=Sikhs on verge of extinction in Pakistan: Campaigner|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/sikhs-on-verge-of-extinction-in-pakistan-campaigner-1593674-2019-08-30|newspaper=India Today}}</ref><ref name="Times of India">{{cite news |date=16 December 2019|title=Has Pak's Hindu Population Dropped Sharply?|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/has-paks-hindu-population-dropped-sharply/articleshow/72686351.cms|newspaper=Times of India}}</ref> |
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==="Blasphemers"=== |
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From 1947 to 2021, 89 Pakistanis were "extra-judicially killed over blasphemy accusations".<ref name="89 killed Dawn 2022">{{cite news |title=89 citizens killed over blasphemy allegations since 1947: report [by the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS)] |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1671491 |access-date=7 August 2023 |agency=Dawn |date=26 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Haq|first=Farhat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dlSXDwAAQBAJ|title=Sharia and the State in Pakistan: Blasphemy Politics|date=2019-05-10|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-429-61999-1|language=en}}</ref><ref name=hoffman-rimsha-2014>{{cite journal |first1=Matt |last1=Hoffman |title=Modern Blasphemy Laws in Pakistan and the Rimsha Masih Case: What Effect—if Any—the Case Will Have on Their Future Reform |journal=Washington University Global Studies Law Review | volume=13 |issue=2|date=2014 |issn= 1546-6981 |url=https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_globalstudies/vol13/iss2/9 |access-date=24 July 2023}}</ref> Among the victims (not for blaspheming but for speaking out against blasphemy laws or acquitting those accused) |
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have been the [[Governor of Punjab (Pakistan)|Governor of Punjab]], Pakistan's largest [[Punjab, Pakistan|province]] ([[Salman Taseer]]),<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/12/salmaan-taseer-case-harks-back-to-1929-killing-of-hindu-publisher|title=Salmaan Taseer murder case harks back to 1929 killing of Hindu publisher |last=Boone|first=Jon|date=12 March 2015|newspaper=The Guardian|issn=0261-3077|access-date=3 January 2017}}</ref> the Federal [[Ministry of Minorities (Pakistan)|Minister for Minorities]] ([[Shahbaz Bhatti]]),<ref>{{cite news |title=Pakistani Christian minister shot dead amid blasphemy row |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJv3gM-gTe8 |access-date=7 August 2023 |agency=EuroNews |date=March 2011}}</ref><ref name="PBS-danger-2011">{{cite news |title=Killing of Pakistan Minister Highlights Peril of Questioning Blasphemy Laws |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/killing-of-pakistan-minister-highlights-peril-of-questioning-blasphemy-laws |access-date=7 August 2023 |agency=PBS News |date=3 March 2011}}</ref> and a high court justice in his chambers ([[Arif Iqbal Bhatti]]).<ref name="Yasif-2012">{{cite news |last1=Yasif |first1=Rana |title=1990 blasphemy acquittal: Judge's murder case put in 'hibernation'" |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/472495/1990s-blasphemy-acquittal-judges-murder-case-put-in-hibernation |access-date=7 August 2023 |agency=The Express Tribune |date=28 November 2012}}</ref> Groups accused of blasphemy have not only been non-Muslim [[Minorities in Pakistan|minorities]] and [[Ahmadiyya]], but [[Shia Islam in the Indian subcontinent|Shia Muslims]]. |
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The sectarian group most strongly associated with "exploiting the emotive issue of blasphemy" is [[Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan|Labaik]].<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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The [[Pakistan Penal Code]], the main [[criminal code]] of [[Pakistan]], penalizes [[blasphemy]] ({{langx|ur|{{Nastaliq|قانون ناموس رسالت}}}}) against any recognized [[religion in Pakistan|religion]], providing penalties ranging from a fine to [[capital punishment in Pakistan|death]],<ref>{{Cite book|last=Haq|first=Farhat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dlSXDwAAQBAJ|title=Sharia and the State in Pakistan: Blasphemy Politics|date=2019-05-10|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-429-61999-1|language=en}}</ref><ref name=hoffman-rimsha-2014/> |
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but the penalty of death has never been carried out under these laws. What has happened is that many of those accused, their lawyers, and anyone speaking against blasphemy laws and proceedings have become victims of [[lynching]]s or street [[vigilantism]] in Pakistan. |
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According to [[Human rights in Pakistan|human rights]] groups, blasphemy laws in Pakistan are "overwhelmingly being used to persecute religious minorities and settle personal vendettas,"<ref name="Hanif-commit">{{cite news|last1=Hanif|first1=Mohammed|title=How to commit blasphemy in Pakistan|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/sep/05/pakistans-blasphemy-laws-colossal-absurdity|access-date=10 December 2014|agency=The Guardian|date=5 September 2012}}</ref><ref name=Wadi-e-Hussain/> but calls for change in blasphemy laws have been strongly resisted by Islamic parties - most prominently the [[Barelvi]] school of Islam.<ref name="Blasphemy in Pakistan Bad-mouthing">[https://www.economist.com/news/asia/21635070-pakistans-blasphemy-laws-legitimise-intolerance-bad-mouthing "Bad-mouthing: Pakistan's blasphemy laws legitimise intolerance".] ''The Economist'', 29 November 2014.</ref> |
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Among the most prominent cases was the 2011 assassination of [[Salman Taseer]]—the governor of Pakistan's largest province ([[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]]) at the time and an outspoken critic of [[Blasphemy law in Pakistan|Pakistan's blasphemy laws]]. The year before several Barelvi clerics had given [[fatwa]]s (religious decree) against Taseer, declaring him ''wajib-ul-qatal'' (worthy of death) arguing that he had blasphemed by |
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criticising the blasphemy law and by seeking to obtain a presidential pardon for [[Asia Bibi blasphemy case|Asia Bibi]], a poor farm worker and Christian who was sentenced to death for blasphemy after Muslim farm workers accused her of insulting Islam during an argument.<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> Taseer was then killed by a man charged with protecting him, his police bodyguard ([[Mumtaz Qadri]]).<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> Qadri's execution was greeted by "an outpouring of public sympathy"<ref name="Suleman-sufi-2018-8">{{cite journal |last1=Suleman |first1=Muhammad |title=Institutionalisation of Sufi Islam after 9/11 and the Rise of Barelvi Extremism in Pakistan |journal=Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses |date=February 2018 |volume=10 |issue=2 |page=8 |jstor=26358994 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26358994 |access-date=2 September 2023}}</ref> with protests held across the country and an estimated 100,000 attended his funeral, chanting slogans.<ref name="BBC-funeral">{{cite web |title=Thousands mourn at Mumtaz Qadri funeral |url=https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=funeral+of+Mumtaz+Qadri&docid=603500092612105755&mid=0F68B511658F07D98EB40F68B511658F07D98EB4&view=detail&FORM=VIRE |website=Bing |publisher=BBC News |access-date=5 August 2023}}</ref><ref name="BBC-mourn-2016">{{cite news |title=Pakistan Salman Taseer murder: Thousands mourn at Mumtaz Qadri funeral |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35693767 |access-date=5 August 2023 |agency=BBC News |date=1 March 2016}}</ref> The [[Sunni Ittehad Council]], a Barelvi group, "glorified" Qadri, a Barelvi, as "an Islamic hero",<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> and militant Barelvi groups found "the powerful message they had previously lacked for mobilising popular support".<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> According to a former top counter-terrorism official quoted by [[International Crisis Group]], Labaik’s success in politicizing blasphemy "is turning so many people into extremists".<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-12">{{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=2022 |publisher=International Crisis Group |pages=8–14 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep42808.7 |access-date=20 July 2023 }}</ref> |
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More recently, in December 2021, a mob of about 800 in [[Sialkot]], [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]], set upon [[Lynching of Priyantha Kumara|Priyantha Kumara]], a Sri Lankan national and factory manager who had allegedly torn a poster inscribed with Islamic verses. The mob believed this constituted blasphemy and tortured and bludgeoned to death Kumara before setting his remains on fire.<ref name="youtube">{{cite web |title=Sri Lankan Man Lynched In Imran's Pakistan, Body Burnt Over Blasphemy Charge After TLP Posters Torn |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMMwjCfgtqI |website=YouTube |access-date=23 July 2023 |date=3 December 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/03/pakistan-sri-lankan-man-priyantha-diyawadana-tortured-killed-alleged-blasphemy-sialkot |title=Man tortured and killed in Pakistan over 'blasphemy' |date=3 December 2021 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London |access-date=2022-04-11}}</ref> Members of the mob proudly told media at the scene that it was a tribute to Muhammad. |
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<ref name="Shahid-2021">{{cite journal |last1=Shahid |first1=Kunwar Khuldune |title=How Islamist Fundamentalists Get Away With Murder in Pakistan |journal=Foreign Policy |date=8 December 2021 |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/12/08/pakistan-blasphemy-killing-priyantha-kumara-islam/ |access-date=7 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Tweet by Hamza Azhar Salam |url=https://twitter.com/HamzaAzhrSalam/status/1466740176072421379 |website=Twitter/X |access-date=7 August 2023}}</ref> |
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During the Muharram of 2020, blasphemy accusations spread to Shia, particularly in Karachi. Section 295-A of the blasphemy law (in effect in the colonial era, before Pakistani independence), which punishes "[d]eliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs", was sited to allege offences by Shia, including display of the seemingly benign "common Shia incantation", ''Ya Ali'', (which calls on [[Ali]] but does not disparage any beloved by Sunnis) "on the front of a Shia family’s house".<ref name="ICG-NEoSViP-2022-16"/> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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{{Portal|Pakistan}} |
{{Portal|Pakistan}} |
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* [[Iran-Saudi Arabia proxy conflict]] |
* [[Iran-Saudi Arabia proxy conflict]] |
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* [[Sunni Tehreek]] |
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* [[Tehrik-e-Jafria]] |
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* [[Persecution of Shia Muslims]] |
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* [[Persecution of Ahmadiyya]] |
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* [[Anti-Bihari sentiment]] |
* [[Anti-Bihari sentiment]] |
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*[[Blasphemy in Pakistan]] |
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* [[Pakistan#Demographics|Pakistani demographics]] |
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*[[International propagation of Salafism and Wahhabism]] |
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*[[Islamic fundamentalism]] |
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*[[Islamic fundamentalism in Iran]] |
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* [[Islamism]] |
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* [[Islam in Pakistan]] |
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* [[Minorities in Pakistan]] |
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* [[Demographics of Pakistan|Pakistani demographics]] |
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* [[Persecution of Ahmadis]] |
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* [[Persecution of minority Muslim groups]] |
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* [[Persecution of Shia Muslims]] |
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* [[Persecution of Hindus]] |
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* [[Religion in Pakistan]] |
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* [[Freedom of religion in Pakistan]] |
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* [[Religious discrimination in Pakistan]] |
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* [[Sectarian violence among Muslims]] |
* [[Sectarian violence among Muslims]] |
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* [[Shi'a–Sunni relations]] |
* [[Shi'a–Sunni relations|Shia–Sunni relations]] |
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* [[Sufi–Salafi relations]] |
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* [[Sunni Tehreek]] |
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* [[Tehrik-e-Jafria]] |
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* [[2003 Quetta mosque bombing]] |
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* [[September 2010 Quetta bombing]] |
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* [[Takfir]] |
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* [[Pakistani textbooks controversy]] |
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==Notes== |
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{{NoteFoot}} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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== |
== Bibliography == |
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* {{cite book |title=A New Era of Sectarian Violence in Pakistan |date=5 September 2022 |url=https://www.crisisgroup.org/sites/default/files/2022-09/327%20Pakistan%20-%20Sectarian%20Violence%20-%20Print.pdf |access-date=23 July 2023 |publisher=International Crisis Group}} Text was copied from this source, which is © 2023 Crisis Group. Reuse and modification are allowed, provided the source is acknowledged. |
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{{Reflist|30em}} |
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* Khaled Ahmad, "Sectarian War", Oxford University Press, (2015). |
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* {{Cite book |last=Khan |first=Badal |chapter=Zikri Dilemmas: Origins, Religious practices, and political constraints |url=https://www.academia.edu/9220030 |title= The Baloch and Others: Linguistic, Historical and Socio-Political Perspectives on Pluralism in Balochistan |date=2008 |editor= Carina Jahani |editor2= Agnes Korn |editor3= Paul Titus |pages=293–326 |language=en}} |
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* Lieven, Anatol, ''Pakistan: A Hard Country'', Penguin Books, (2012). |
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* {{cite book | last=Nasr |first=Vali |title=The Shia Revival : How Conflicts Within Islam Will Shape the Future |publisher=Norton |date= 2006 }} |
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* Rieck, A., ''The Shias of Pakistan'', Oxford University Press, (2015). |
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* Saif, Mashal. ''The 'Ulama in Contemporary Pakistan: Contesting and Cultivating an Islamic Republic''. United Kingdom, Cambridge University Press, (2020). |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sectarian Violence In Pakistan}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sectarian Violence In Pakistan}} |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Social history of Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Islam in Pakistan]] |
[[Category:Islam in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Regional rivalries]] |
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[[Category:Religiously motivated violence in Pakistan]] |
[[Category:Religiously motivated violence in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Schisms in Islam]] |
[[Category:Schisms in Islam]] |
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[[Category:Sectarian violence in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Shia Islam in Pakistan]] |
[[Category:Shia Islam in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Christianity in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Hinduism in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Sikhism in Pakistan]] |
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[[Category:Conflicts in 2022]] |
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[[Category:Persecution by Muslims]] |
[[Category:Persecution by Muslims]] |
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[[Category:Sectarian violence|Pakistan]] |
Latest revision as of 16:42, 12 December 2024
This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Updates needed past 5 August 2022.(December 2023) |
Sectarian violence in Pakistan | |||||||
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Terrorist & extremist groups
Islamic State-Aligned groups
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Since 1947, tens of thousands of Shia were killed in Pakistan by militants[11][20][21][22] |
Sectarian violence in Pakistan refers to violence directed against people and places in Pakistan motivated by antagonism toward the target's religious sect. As many as 4,000 Shia (a Muslim minority group) are estimated to have been killed in sectarian attacks in Pakistan between 1987 and 2007,[23] and thousands more Shia have been killed by Salafi extremists from 2008 to 2014, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).[24] Sunni (the largest Muslim sect) Sufis and Barelvis[25][note 1] have also suffered from some sectarian violence, with attacks on religious shrines killing hundreds of (usually Bareelvi) worshippers[27] (more orthodox Sunni believing shrine culture to be idolatrous),[28][29][30] and some Deobandi leaders assassinated. Pakistan minority religious groups, including Hindus, Ahmadis, and Christians, have "faced unprecedented insecurity and persecution" in at least two recent years (2011 and 2012), according to Human Rights Watch.[31][32] One significant aspect of the attacks in Pakistan is that militants often target their victims places of worship during prayers or religious services in order to maximize fatalities and to "emphasize the religious dimensions of their attack".[33]
Among those blamed for the sectarian violence in the country are mainly Deobandi militant groups, such as the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP), Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP),[34] and also the Jundallah (an affiliate of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant).[33] Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan "has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks" on Shia according to Human Rights Watch.[24] In recent years the Barelvi group Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (Labbaik) has been credited with instigating much violence.[28] Salafi militant groups (such as Islamic State) are also blamed for attacks on Shias, Barelvis and Sufis.[35][36] As of 2022, violent sectarian groups continue to expand their influence across the country, with less violence from SSP and LeJ, but more from Labbaik[28] and the Islamic State, and limited response from the state to counter their large-scale attacks.[28]
Sectarian Violence in Pakistan: 1989-2018[37]
- incidents
- killed
Terminology
[edit]Sectarian refers to sects or religious groups in this article. Although "Sectarianism" can refer to conflict between ethnic, political and cultural as well as religious groups, and there is sometimes an overlap between religious and ethnic groups and fights (according to the U.S. Library of Congress, violence is often based on "different social, political, and economic statuses that correlate with religion" rather than religious doctrine;[38] the Pakistan military, for example, has allegedly used the Deobandi sectarian group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi "as a proxy to counter Baloch separatist militants"),[28] in the context of Pakistan, sectarian usually refers to sects or religious groups.[note 2] (For ethnic and regional separatist violence in Pakistan, see Separatist movements of Pakistan.)
Sectarian violence is not exclusively non-governmental. In literature on "sectarian groups" in Pakistan, the groups referred to are non-governmental, but governmental actors have been accused of sectarianism and aiding sectarian groups. Police have been accused of refusing to prevent sectarian acts, of refusing "to charge persons who commit them",[note 3] and government officials have been accused of helping the formation of sectarian terror groups. (For example General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq helped Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP))[note 4] though this doesn't mean that SSP didn't attempt to kill other government officials (Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab police investigating SSP crimes) some years later.[note 5] And if sectarian violence includes forced disappearances,[note 6] than police in Pakistan have also been accused of sectarian violence.
Sectarian violence is often, but not necessarily, terrorist (attacks on unarmed civilians) in Pakistan, but there have also been violence between armed sectarians.[note 7]
Religions and sects
[edit]Muslims
[edit]Approximately 97% of Pakistanis are either Sunni or Shia Muslims,[45] the two largest religious groups in Pakistan. In Pakistan as worldwide, Shia Islam constitutes a minority[46][47][48][49][50] and Sunni a majority of Muslims.[51] Estimates of the size of these groups vary—adherents of Shi'a Islam in Pakistan are thought to make up between 9 and 15% of the population,[52][48][53] (roughly 30 million),[54][55][56] and Sunni between 70 and 75%,[57][46][47] (according experts such as the Library of Congress,[25] Pew Research Center,[46][47] Oxford University,[45] the CIA World Factbook).[58] While the overwhelming majority of Shia in Pakistan (and around the world) are "Twelver" Shia (aka Asna-e-Ashari), there are smaller Shi'i sects, such as varieties of Ismaili.[59]
Barelvi and Deobandi Sunni Muslims
[edit]There are two major Sunni sects in Pakistan, the Barelvi movement and Deobandi movement. Statistics regarding Pakistan's sects and sub-sects have been called "tenuous",[28] but estimates of the sizes of the two groups give a slight majority of Pakistan's population to followers of the Barelvi school, while 15–25% are thought to follow the Deobandi school of jurisprudence.[60][61][62]
Smaller Muslim sects
[edit]Ahmadi
[edit]Somewhere between 0.22% (official figure) and 2.2% (highest estimate) of Pakistan's population follow the Ahmadi sect,[note 8] who, though they consider themselves Muslims, were officially designated 'non-Muslims' by a 1974 constitutional amendment, due to pressure from Sunni revivalist and extremist groups.[68]
Zikris
[edit]Like Ahmadis, and unlike orthodox Muslims, Zikris believe the Mahdi of Islam has already arrived. Zikris, an Islamic sect of less than one million, originally from the sparsely populated and poor region of Balochistan in western Pakistan, have been described as "a minority Muslim group",[69] but also a "Muslim offshoot sect",[70] or a "semi-Muslim".[71] Like orthodox Muslims, Zikri revere the Quran, but unlike them they believe the Mahdi has already arrived[72] and do not follow the same ritual prayer practices.[73]
Non-Muslim groups
[edit]Hinduism is the second largest religion in Pakistan after Islam, according to the 1998 census.[74] Non-Muslim religions also include Christianity, which has 2,800,000 (1.6%) adherents as of 2005.[75] The Bahá'í Faith claims 30,000, followed by Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis, each claiming 20,000 adherents,[76] and a very small community of Jains.[77]
History and general causes
[edit]Causes
[edit]Some of the general reasons offered for sectarian violence in Pakistan, include
- Socio-economic causes of general instability:
- socio-economic pressure from having one of the world's highest birthrates, but a scarcity of both water and energy supplies;[78]
- a multitude of ethnolinguistic groups – "Pashtun, Baloch, Punjabi, Sindhi, Seraiki and Muhajir" – with disputes over the sharing of scarce resources, leading to increased ethnic/regional tensions as "groups began to assert their cultural and nationalist agendas",[79] (an example being the concentration of power and resources in the northeastern part of the country and domination of the military by Punjabis and Pashtuns, while the poor but energy-rich southwestern Baluchistan province has a strong separatist movement).[78] which spilled over into religious disputes (it's been suggested, for example, that "a religious or sect-based conflict" is a way of keeping the Balochis politically divided).[80]
- A crisis of "legitimisation" among successive governments brought on by their failure to achieve "stated developmental agendas" or significant economic growth, making governments "more dependent on Islam as a binding force for society and polity". This was particularly extreme in the case with General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq,[81] who failed to restore democracy as promised after overthrowing and executing an elected prime minister.[79]
- General Zia's Islamisation policies from 1977 to 1988 where, he attempted to "gain legitimacy" and create an "Islamic polity and society", were based not on some consensus of Pakistani Muslims interpretation of Islam, or even the most popular Sunni school (Barelvi), but on a "more codified and strict" form of Islam from Saudi Arabia (Wahhabi Islam).[79] Zia's Islamic penal code and the "Islamic" textbooks in state schools and colleges were "derived entirely" from one set of sources, the orthodox "classical Sunni-Hanafi" school.[81] "Minor theological debates and cultural differences" among Pakistanis metastasized into "unbridgeable, volatile sectarian divisions".[81]
- During his rule, hardline Sunni religious groups, from which he gained support, were strengthened,[82] and "sunk their roots in Pakistan".[83] The new strict Islamic orthodoxy of these hardline Sunnis strongly disapproved of the shrine pilgrimage practices that were part of practice of the majority Pakistani Barelvi sect, of the Ashura processions (and other doctrines) of the Shia, and especially of beliefs of the tiny Ahmadiyya sect.
- Other causes are Pakistan's involvement in the Jihad against Soviets and their allied Marxists in Afghanistan (1979 to 1989) which led to
Central and southern Punjab, served as a base for ‘mujahideen’ recruits. Most of these ‘mujahideen’ returned to Pakistan after the Russian forces pulled out in the late 1980s, and brought with them a sizeable supply of arms, ammunition and a proclivity for violence. They joined the extremist sectarian outfits and since then, sectarian rivalry was largely expressed through extreme violence.[85]
- One of the outlets for mujahideen after the Soviet forces began to leave Afghanistan (May 1988-February 1989) was Kashmir, where a wave of civil disobedience and protests by the Muslim majority in Kashmir was erupting just as the Soviet forces were leaving Afghanistan (May 1988-February 1989).[86] Committed to help Muslims (which Pakistan believed should have been part of Pakistan to begin with), Pakistan sent in the Jihadis that had trained for Afghan Jihad. New organisations, like Hizbul Mujahideen, were set up, their members were drawn from the ideological spheres of Deobandi seminaries and Jamaat-e-islami.[87]
- The establishment of "a powerful network of militant madarssas", that "combined weapons training with a fundamentalist and violent interpretation of Islam". These were originally set up to train volunteer 'students' - Taliban - for the war in Afghanistan. Now that the Taliban in Afghanistan are victorious, a substantial numbers of these 'students' (as well as their motivators and mentors) are free to turn "their attention to other areas of conflict, including Pakistan itself".[79] and provide sectarian groups with "an endless stream of recruits".[81] Zia's "goals subsequently coalesced with the national security goal of building close linkages with the Afghan Mujahideen after the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979".[79]
- Institutions that in theory should keep violence and sectarian in check have been hamstrung.[81]
- International Crisis Group credits continued violence to naive attempts to manipulate and/or co-opt sects.
- After the 9/11 terror attacks, "foreign donors" hoped to "counter Deobandi militants" such as the Taliban, by strengthening what they believed to be peace-loving rival Barelvi and Sufi sects, as an "antidote" to hard-line, anti-Shia, anti-Western Deobandi and Wahhabi Sunni sects.[88] Barelvis and Barelvi leaders had been victims of sectarian violence, but that did not stop the Barelvi groups Labaik and Sunni Ittehad Council from inciting and using violence as they became more powerful. This included supporting the assassination of Punjab governor Salman Taseer by his police bodyguard (a Barelvi) for Taseer's criticism of blasphemy laws and efforts to obtain a pardon for a woman sentenced to death for blasphemy.[88]
- Allowing sectarian groups to contest elections and thereby change their direction away from killing people, towards pleasing constituents and getting reelected, appears to "embolden rather than moderate them". In particular, the Labaik group was allowed by the Election Commission of Pakistan to contest the July 2018 national elections, despite its espousing a hardline sectarianism and acts of inciting violence. During the campaign, a Labaik youth leader shot and wounded Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, an act defended by the head of Labaik. The group also threatened Supreme Court judges with a "horrible end" if they overruled a blasphemy death sentence being appealed, and declared army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa a non-Muslim, calling for mutiny against him.[89]
History
[edit]As mentioned above, Islamisation policies of General Zia (from 1977 to 1988) strengthened a strict form of Sunni Islam in Pakistan. Pakistan aided the Afghan resistance movement (especially starting in the mid-1980s) with weapons through the Pakistani intelligence services, in a program called Operation Cyclone.[90] After the Soviets withdrew in 1989, the weapons (particularly Kalashnikov assault rifles) did not disappear but were often smuggled into Pakistan by Afghan soldiers in need of money.[note 9]
In the 1980s and 1990s, the problem of violence was worst was in Karachi and in the province of Sindh.[82] In the 1990s, the insurgency in Indian-administered Kashmir sponsored by the Pakistan military, allowed groups such as the SSP and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi to "consolidate".[28]
Sectarian strife has evolved over the decades. From approximately 1990 to 2011 Sunni and Shia extremists from their respective groups attacked each other.[82] By 2005, observers complained "administrative and legal action" had "failed to dismantle a well-entrenched and widely spread terror infrastructure". Among other techniques, when an extremist group was banned, it gave itself a new name.[81] Police action, however, decimated the leadership of at least the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi so that by the mid-2010s its sectarian attacks against the Shia declined.[83]
Following this period of "relative peace" a new era of sectarian conflict emerged,[83] with Sunni militants "inspired by al-Qaeda's ideology" (principally followers of the Islamic State) became the main instigators of violence.[82]
Former Lashkar-e-Jhangvi rank-and-file joined Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), the Islamic State's local franchise. In 2017 the Barelvi-dominated Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan rose to "prominence" and "took the lead" in home grown Sunni sectarianism. (This was despite the fact Barelvi had a history of "shared ritual practice with Shias", and were "once regarded as the more moderate" Sunni sub-sect.)[83]
Perpetrators and sectarian groups
[edit]Some of the paramilitary and terrorist groups that have perpetrated of acts of sectarian violence in Pakistan include:
- Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP, literally, "Guardians of the Prophet's Companions", renamed Millat-e-Islamia, and later Ahl-e Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ)) - an Islamist organisation that also functions as a political party. Its "foundational tenets" were urging the exclusion of Shias from government jobs; the proscription of Shia religious programs, processions and rituals; spreading fear among the Shia community and particularly among prominent Shias so that they fled the country.[28] In 2011 the group issued a statement declaring all Shias wajib-ul-qatal (fit to be killed).[28] It origins have been described as Anjuman Sipah-e-Sahaba (ASS) - formed by a group of Deobandi militants to wage 'war' against the Shia landholders in Jhang;[85] but also as having broken away from the main Deobandi Sunni organisation in the 1980s.[note 10] The group was renamed SSP during the Islamisation campaign of Zia-ul-Haq, which coincided with the Iranian revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini.[85] SSP, like LeJ, "later became part of the al-Qaeda network in Pakistan".[92]
- Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ, literally Army of Jhangvi) — has claimed responsibility for various mass casualty attacks against the Shia community in Pakistan,[93] including multiple bombings that killed over 200 Hazara Shias in Quetta in 2013. It has also been linked to the Mominpura Graveyard attack in 1998, the abduction of Daniel Pearl in 2002, and the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore in 2009.[94][95] A predominantly Punjabi group,[96] the LeJ has been labelled by Pakistani intelligence officials as one of the country's most virulent terrorist organisations.[97] It was created as "ostensibly separate"[28] from the SSP when that organization sought to pursue electoral politics, but its "operatives used SSP mosques and madrasas as hideouts, and SSP networks to plot and carry out attack".[28] Lashkar-e-Jhangvi continued to attacks on Shias until the mid-2010s, when police action decimated its leadership and sectarian attacks declined.[83]
- Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (aka Pakistani Taliban, TTP) — this group attracted LeJ members to join after "horrific attacks" against Shia.[98] Under the leadership of Hakimullah Mehsud, who had a long history of association with LeJ, sectarian killings in Pakistan became "more frequent". Under him, the TTP targeted "munafaqeen" (those who spread discord), which meant not only Ahmedi and Shia but Barelvis/Sufis (who make up about half the population of Pakistan). "The TTP began openly attacking Sufi shrines."[99] Among the stated objectives of TTP is the overthrow the government of Pakistan,[100][101] by waging a terrorist campaign against its armed forces and security forces.[102] Among other attacks it killed 150, mostly children, in the 2014 Peshawar school massacre.[28] The TTP depends on the tribal belt along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border for support and recruits, and receives ideological guidance from al-Qaeda.[102]
- Jundallah — a "splinter group" of TTP, but as of 2015 aligned with Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISKP). After one attack by the group that killed 60 Shia worshipers, its spokesperson Ahmed (Fahad) Marwat stated: "Our target was the Shi'a community mosque… they are our enemies" [103]
- Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISKP) – the local Islamic State branch. As of 2022, the group is primarily an urban phenomenon, seemingly composed of de-centralised units that target Shia sites, avoiding the more dangerous task of directly challenging the Pakistan state.[28] Its recruits have been primarily disgruntled Deobandi militants from Lashkar-e-Jhangvi/SSP (whose leadership has been decimated),[28] or the Pakistani Taliban.[28] (Unlike members in Afghanistan, its members are predominantly Deobandi rather than Salafi). It was responsible for the 4 March 2022 bombing of a Shia mosque in Peshawar which killed more than 60.[83]
- Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (Labbaik, for short) — a hardline political party and violent protest movement, most of whose followers are Barelvi,[83] which mobilises around perceived insults to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Starting around 2017, Labbaik has been responsible for inciting or conducting some of the worst sectarian and vigilante violence in Pakistan. In particular the 3 December 2021 mob lynching of Priyantha Kumara, a Sri Lankan factory manager wrongly accused of blasphemy. While Labbaik does not represent Barelvi Islam, most of its followers are Barelvi.[83] Labaik has embraced an anti-Shia agenda, breaking with Barelvis’ history of shared ritual practice with Shias.[83] Among other activities, the group threatened Supreme Court judges with a "horrible end" if they overruled the Asia Bibi blasphemy sentence, called for mutiny against army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa, who it declared a non-Muslim.[89] A Labaik youth leader shot and wounded Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, during the July 2018 elections campaign, which another Labaik leader justified on the grounds that Iqbal's party (PML-N) had committed blasphemy.[28]
- Tehreek-e-Jafaria Pakistan (TeJP, Movement of Ja'fari (Ja'fari is the 12er Shia school of fiqh) — was a Shia political party founded in 1979 by Syed Arif Hussain Al Hussaini to protect the interests of the Shiite minority and to spread the ideas of the leader of the Iranian Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.[85] Its origins are in Tehreek Nifaz Fiqah-e-Jafria (TNFJ). A splinter group, the Sipah-e-Muhammad Pakistan (SMP), with a significant following in Jhang, emerged in 1994 as a prominent Shia terrorist outfit involved in anti-SSP campaigns, violence and target killings. TeJP was banned along with three terrorist organizations by the government of Pakistan on 12 January 2002, and again on 5 November 2011.
- Sipah-e-Muhammad Pakistan (SMP, Army of Muhammad) — is an Iranian supported Shia group that splintered off from TeJP;[84] it has been involved in sectarian terrorist activity primarily in Pakistani Punjab.[104] in the 1980 and 90s it , "engaged in tit-for-tat killings" with the SSP.[28] The SMP was proscribed by President Pervez Musharraf as a sectarian terrorist outfit on 14 August 2001.[104]
Victims and causes
[edit]Barelvi Muslims
[edit]From 1986 to 2020 "more than 600 Barelvi leaders and activists" have been killed and "almost all" the major Sufi shrines, including Abdullah Shah Ghazi, Data Darbar, and Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, have come under attack.[105]
In April 2006, the entire leadership of two prominent Barelvi outfits, the Sunni Tehreek and Jamaat Ahle Sunnat were killed in a bomb attack in Nishtar Park, in Pakistan's largest city and business hub Karachi.[106][107] On 12 June 2009, Sarfraz Ahmed Naeemi, a prominent Barelvi cleric and outspoken critic of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan was killed in a suicide bombing.[108]
Sufi shrines
[edit]Sufism, a mystical Islamic tradition, has a long history and a large popular following in Pakistan, where it is "followed by the Barelvi school of thought".[109] Orthodox Deobandis "perceive the Barelvi shrine culture as idolatrous"[28] and Deobandi militants have targeted major Barelvi shrines. Between 2005 and 2010 hundreds of Barelvi sect members were killed in more than 70 suicide attacks at different religious shrines .[27] In two years, 2010 and 2011, 128 people were killed and 443 were injured in 22 attacks on (mostly Sufi) shrines and tombs of saints and religious people in Pakistan.[110]
These shrines include
- the Data Darbar in Lahore where a July 2010 bombing killed at least 50 people injured 200 others;
- the Bari Imam tomb in Islamabad in 2005 where a bombing killed twenty people;
- the Shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan in a November 2017 suicide attack where a bombing killed at least 90 people and injured over 300;[28]
- Abdullah Shah Ghazi's tomb in Karachi was attacked in 2010 by suicide bombers who killed 10 and injured 50;[111][112]
- the Khal Magasi in Balochistan, and Rahman Baba's tomb in Peshawar have also been attacked,[113]
Perpetrators of these acts include Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (aka Pakistani Taliban, TTP), Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP), and Lashkar-e-Taiba.[28][113]
Popular Sufi culture is centred on Thursday night gatherings at shrines and annual festivals which feature Sufi music and dance. Contemporary Islamic fundamentalists criticise its popular character, which in their view, deviates from the teachings and practice of Muhammad and his companions.[30][114]
Deobandi Muslims
[edit]There have been assassinations or attempted assassinations of several Deobandi religious leaders.
On 18 May 2000, a leading Deobandi leader and scholar Mullah Muhammad Yusuf Ludhianvi, who taught at one of Pakistan's largest Deobandi seminaries, the Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia, was gunned down by unidentified attackers in Karachi, in a suspected targeted sectarian killing.[115]
On 30 May 2004, Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzai, Shaykh al-Hadith of Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia was assassinated in Karachi.[116]
On 22 March 2020, an assassination attempt was made on Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, a prominent intellectual leader and religious scholar of the Deobandi movement, which he survived.[117]
On 10 October 2020, Maulana Muhammad Adil Khan, another prominent religious scholar and head of Jamia Farooqia, was gunned down by unidentified attackers in Karachi in apparent sectarian violence.[118][119]
Deobandis have alleged a bias towards Barelvis by the provincial government of Punjab.[120]
Shia Muslims
[edit]Shia, the largest religious minority group in Pakistan, have been "the focus of most sectarian violence" in Pakistan.[122] Between 2001 and 2018, approximately 4800 Shias were killed in sectarian violence.[note 11] Extreme sectarian Sunni Muslims have takfired (excommunicated) Shia for their belief that the first three Muslim caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman) were usurpers (Ali being the only true Rashidun Caliph in the Shia view).[28][125]
Early years of Pakistan
[edit]At least one scholar (Vali Nasr), sees the period before the Iranian Islamic Revolution as a time of relative unity and harmony between pious, traditionalist Sunni and Shia Muslims—a unity brought on by a feeling of being under siege from a common threat, i.e. secularism.[126] However, the first major sectarian massacre in Pakistan occurred in 1963, some years before the Iranian revolution, when 118 Shia were killed by a mob of Deobandi Muslims in Therhi, Sindh.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan (whose religious beliefs are disputed but who followed the Twelver Shi'a teachings as an adult),[note 12] was known to say things like "... in this state of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the state ... ".[129][130] Historian Moonis Ahmar writes, "in the formative phase of Pakistan, the notion of religious extremism was almost non-existent as the founder of the country, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, made it clear that the new state would not be theocratic in nature. However, after his demise on September 11, 1948, his successors failed to curb the forces of religious militancy ..."[131][note 13] Although the sectarian literature attacking Shi'ism has been distributed into Punjab since Shah Abd al-Aziz wrote his Tuhfa Asna Ashariya, major incidents of anti-Shia violence began only after mass migration in 1947, when the strict and sectarian clergy from Uttar Pradesh brought their version of Islam to the Sufism-oriented Punjab and Sindh.[citation needed]
Sectarian Sunni extremists were "particularly harsh in damning Ashoura"—aka Azadari, or the Mourning of Muharram—as "a heathen spectacle" and a "shocking affront to the memory of the rightful caliphs".[133]
Many students of Molana Abdul Shakoor Farooqi and Molana Hussain Ahmad Madani migrated to Pakistan and either set up seminaries here or became part of the Tanzim-e-Ahle-Sunnat (TAS) or Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), preaching against Shi'i rituals of Azadari/Muharram/Ashoura.[note 14]
In the 1950s, Tanzim-e-Ahle-Sunnat (TAS) started to arrange public gatherings all over Pakistan to preach against Shia sanctities. The TAS monthly periodical, called Da’wat, also included anti-Shia preaching. During the Muharram of 1955, attacks took place on at least 25 Shia targets in Punjab. In 1956, thousands of armed villagers gathered to attack Shia mourning Hussein in the small town of Shahr Sultan, but were prevented by Police at least from killing anyone. On 7 August 1957, three Shias were killed during an attack in Sitpur village. In response to Shia outrage, TAS insisted the cause of the rioting and bloodshed was Azadari, not those attacking it, and demanded that the government ban the tradition. In May 1958, a Shia orator Agha Mohsin was target-killed in Bhakkar.[134]
Muhammad Ayub Khan enforced Martial Law in 1958. In the 1960s, Shias started to face state persecution when Azadari processions were banned at some places and the ban was lifted only after protests. In Lahore, the main procession of Mochi gate was forced to change its route. After Martial Law was lifted in 1962, anti-Shia propaganda started again, both in the form of books and weekly papers. The Deobandi TAS demanded the Azadari to be limited to Shia ghetto's. Following Muharram, on 3 June 1963, two Shias were killed and over a hundred injured in an attack on Ashura procession in Lahore. In a small town of Tehri in the Khairpur District of Sindh, 120 Shias were slaughtered. On 16 June, six Deobandi organisations arranged a public meeting in Lahore where they blamed Shia for the violence. The report of the commission appointed to inquire into the riots led to no punishment of the perpetrators.[135][note 15]
In 1969, Ashura procession was attacked in Jhang. On 26 February 1972, Ashura procession was stone pelted on in Dera Ghazi Khan. In May 1973, the Shia neighbourhood of Gobindgarh in Sheikhupura district was attacked by Deobandi mob. There were troubles in Parachinar and Gilgit too. In 1974, Shia villages were attacked in Gilgit by armed Deobandi men. January 1975 saw several attacks on Shia processions in Karachi, Lahore, Chakwal and Gilgit. In Babu Sabu, a village near Lahore, three Shias were killed and many were left injured.[136]
An example of anti-Shi'i propaganda can be found in an editorial of Al-Haq magazine written by Molana Samilul Haq:
"We must also remember that Shias consider it their religious duty to harm and eliminate the Ahle-Sunna .... the Shias have always conspired to convert Pakistan to a Shia state ... They have been conspiring with our foreign enemies and with the Jews. It was through such conspiracies that the Shias masterminded the separation of East Pakistan and thus satiated their thirst for the blood of the Sunnis".[137]
(In fact, contrary to the claims of Samilul Haq, the Shia population of Bangladesh is very small, and it is widely agreed that the independence struggle of Bangladesh was motivated by economic and cultural grievances, (refusal by the government to use the Bengali language, disproportionate government funding of West Pakistan, etc.) Shias of Pakistan form a small minority in civil and military services where they have tried to downplay their religious identity for fears of discrimination.)[138]
Post-Zia era and causes of the outbreak of sectarianism
[edit]"Most analysts agree"[citation needed]that Sunni-Shia strife began in earnest in 1979 when having overthrown populist leftist Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (a Shia) was overthrown by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq.
Some causes
[edit]- General Zia was a conservative and pious Sunni Muslim, but as a military dictator he also needed to legitimise his military rule and did so by Islamicising Pakistani politics.[84] Islamic religious parties felt empowered by the islamization program and the Islamic religious revival in general, and the influence of socialism and modernism began to wane. According to the International Crisis Group,
Sunni militant groups sunk their roots in Pakistan during General Zia-ul-Haq’s military government (1977-1988). The anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan, efforts to curb Shia militancy in response to Iran’s 1979 revolution, the regime’s Islamisation program – all these Zia-era policies prepared the ground for organisations with sectarian agendas to flourish.[83]
- Among the mujahideen (mentioned above) returning to Pakistan from Afghanistan in the late 1980s, bringing "with them a sizeable supply of arms, ammunition and a proclivity for violence",[85] were both Sunni and Shia. However, Sunnis formed a large majority in Pakistan, and also among the mujahideen. Radical Sunni Islamists were able to establish armed groups like the Sipah-e-Sahaba.[84]
- Mujahideen who went to fight jihad in Kashmir[139] as part of organisations, like Hizbul Mujahideen, were drawn from the ideological spheres of Deobandi seminaries and Jamaat-e-islami,[87] a milieu intolerant of Shia. These jihadis used time at home to act as part-time sectarian terrorists.
- The Iranian Islamic revolution of 1979 "boosted" the self-confidence of Shia in Pakistan (and elsewhere), but created a Sunni backlash.[84][140] Shia were traditionally subservient to the majority Sunni sect, but the Islamic revolution—in majority Shia Iran, led by a Shia religious leader, and praised by a leading Sunni Islamist (and Pakistani) Abul A'la Maududi—inspired Shia. Newly assertive Shia joined "avowedly Shia political movements", (such as Tehreek-e-Jafaria Pakistan) often funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, and pushing "specifically Shia political agendas".[141]
- In Pakistan, Shia resisted Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization campaign as "Sunnification", as the laws and regulations were based on Sunni fiqh (jurisprudence). In July 1980, 25,000 Shia protested the Islamization laws in the capital Islamabad. Shia won an exemption from state zakat collection, but in the long term helped "make sectarian divisions a central issue in the country's politics".[142] This assertiveness changed the attitude of Sunni towards Shia from "misguided brethren" to "upstart heretics", a viewpoint that came to be spread not just by "marginal extremists" but "senior Sunni Ulama".[143]
- Personalities. Further exacerbating the situation was the dislike between Shia leader Imam Khomeini and Pakistan's General Muhammad Zia ul-Haq.[144] Khomeini threatened to do to the Pakistani leader "what he had done to the Shah" if Zia mistreated the Shia in Pakistan;[145] and on another occasion mocked Zia's warning not to provoke a superpower by saying he, (Khomeini), had his own superpower – his being God while Zia's was the United States.[146]
- Khomeini's campaign to overthrow the House of Saud in Saudi Arabia and the strong opposition among pious Sunni to it.[147] The Iranian revolution had surprised Iranians as well as the rest of the world in overthrowing what everyone thought was the powerful, secure, Shah of Iran. This contributed to confidence among the revolutionaries that their success was just the beginning of similar revolutionary overthrows of other lax Muslim monarchies. Khomeini set his eyes on Saudi Arabia, which was an ally of America, but also the patron of conservative Sunni revivalists, not least those in Pakistan.[148][149] Saudi spent billions of dollars every year funding Islamic schools, scholarships, fellowships, and mosques around the Sunni world. "Thousands of aspiring preachers, Islamic scholars, and activists ... joined Saudi-funded think tanks and research institutions." They "then spread throughout the Muslim world to teach" what they had learned and "work at Saudi-funded universities, schools, mosques, and research institutions."[148] One influential conservative Sunni religious leader, Molana Manzoor Ahmad Naumani, opposed both Shia and the Sunni Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami and feared that the revolution might actually empower them both. He obtained funding from Rabta Aalam-i-Islami of Saudi Arabia and wrote a book against Shias and Khomeini, (Īrānī inqilāb, Imām K͟humainī, aur Shīʻiyat or "Khomeini, Iranian Revolution and Shi'ite faith".) Meanwhile, cleric Molana Haq Nawaz Jhangvi from Punjab, reorganized Taznim-e-Ahle-Sunnat renaming it Anjuman Sipah-e-Sahaba (ASS), later changing it to Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP).
- The Islamic revival brought out the doctrinal differences between Shia and Sunni. According to scholar Vali Nasr, as the Muslim world was decolonialised and nationalism lost its appeal, religion filled its place.[citation needed] As religion became more important, so did a return to its fundamentals and a following of its finer points; differences once overlooked or tolerated became deviations to be denouncing and fought, and there were many differences between Sunni and Shia. Fundamentalism blossomed and conflicts reasserted, in particular when Sunni followed the strict teachings of Sunni scholar Ibn Taymiyyah,[150] who considered Shia apostates[151] and who is held in high regard by Sunni Salafi.
Attacks
[edit]A series of attacks in the later 1970s and 1980s include:
- In February 1978, Ali Basti, a Shia neighborhood in Karachi, was attacked by a Deobandi mob and 5 men were killed.[152]
- During Muharram of that year, Azadari processions were attacked in Lahore and Karachi leaving 22 Shias dead.[153]
- After Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979, the country became a safe haven for conservative Sunni jihadis ostensibly in Pakistan to wage jihad against the Marxists in Afghanistan, but these jihadis also sometimes attacked Shia civilians. During Muharram 1980, the Afghan Refugees settled near Parachinar attacked Shia villages and in 1981, they expelled Shias from Sadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
- In 1983, Shias neighbourhoods of Karachi were attacked on Eid Milad-un-Nabi. At least 60 people were killed[154] 94 houses were set on fire, 10 Shias were killed.[153] On Muharram 1983, there were again attacks on Shias in Karachi.[43]
- From 1984 to 1986 Muharram disturbances spread to Lahore and the Baluchistan region leaving hundreds more dead.[43]
- On 6 July 1985, police opened fire on a Shia demonstration in Quetta, killing 17 Shias.[155] Shias responded and 11 attackers were killed. According to police report, among the 11 attackers who died in the clash only 2 were identified as police sepoys and 9 were civilian Deobandis wearing fake police uniforms.
- In Muharram 1986, 7 Shias were killed in Punjab, 4 in Lahore, 3 in Layyah.[153]
- In July 1987, Shia in the northwestern town of Parachinar were attacked by Sunni Afghan Mujahideen, but were able to fight back, many of them armed with locally made automatic weapons.[43] 52 Shias and 120 attackers lost their lives.[44]
- In 1988, 9 unarmed Shia civilians were shot dead while defying a ban on Shia procession in Dera Ismail Khan.
In the 1988 Gilgit Massacre, somewhere between 150 and 900 Shia Muslims were killed after fighting started over whether Ramadan fasting was over and Eid al-Fitr could begin (Sunni maintaining the Shia had broken the fast too early). In response to the riots and revolt against Zia-ul-Haq's regime, the Pakistan Army led an armed group of local Sunni tribals from Chilas, accompanied by Osama bin Laden-led Sunni militants from Afghanistan and Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province into Gilgit City and adjoining areas in order to suppress the revolt.[156][157][158][159][160]
From 1987 to 2007, "as many as 4,000 people are estimated to have died" in Shia-Sunni sectarian fighting in Pakistan".[23] Amongst the culprits blamed for the killing were Al-Qaeda working "with local sectarian groups" to kill what they perceive as Shia apostates, and "foreign powers ... trying to sow discord."[23] Most violence took place in the largest province of Punjab and the country's commercial and financial capital, Karachi.[84] There were also conflagrations in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Azad Kashmir,[84] with several hundreds of Shia killed in Balochistan killed since 2008.[161] Shia responded to the attacks creating a classic vicious cycle of "outrages and vengeance".[92]
Rivalry between [ Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan and Tehreek-e-Jaferia Pakistan ] intensified when the SSP founder Haq Nawaz Jhangvi was killed in March 1990. The same year also witnessed the killing of an Iranian diplomat, Sadiq Ganji in Lahore. In 1997, Jhangvi's successor Zia-ur-Rehman Farooqi and 26 others were killed in a bomb blast at the Lahore Sessions Court. In the aftermath, Iranian diplomat Muhammad Ali Rahimi and six locals were killed in an attack on the Iranian Cultural Centre in Multan. On April 12, 2000 three hand grenades were lobbed at a gathering in a Shia mosque in Mulawali, the hometown of Syed Sajid Naqvi, killing 13 persons, including five members of the family of Syed Sajid Naqvi. The grenade was reportedly hurled from an adjacent Sunni mosque. Shortly thereafter, a TJP leader, Syed Farrukh Barjees was killed at Khanewal near Multan on April 26. On November 23, 2000, Anwar Ali Akhunzada, the central general secretary of TJP in Peshawar was assassinated by the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ).[85]
One element of the violence was Shia "intellecticide" beginning in the 1990s: doctors, engineers, professors, businessmen, clerics, lawyers, civil servants and other men of learning were listed and then murdered[162] "in a systematic attempt to remove Shias from positions of authority."[163] Between January and May 1997, 75 Shia community leaders were assassinated by Sunni terror groups.[163] The mainstream media of Pakistan, either out of fear of jihadists or ideological orientation, did not disclose the religion of the victims, leading the public to think a systematic one-sided campaign was tit-for-tat, or even that Shias were the aggressors and the Deobandis the victims. It also prevented researchers and human rights activists from gathering the correct data and forming a realistic narrative.[164] Another tactic deployed that helped confuse the situation, at least for a while, was the changing of the names of terror groups. Instead of groups whose anti-Shia orientation was widely known, credit for attacks would be taken by an unfamiliar name. In the 1980s Tanzim-e-Ahlesunnat (TAS) had come to be known as Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, in the 1990s a new umbrella was set up under the name of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), whose members, though ostensibly a separate organization, were supported by SSP's lawyers and funding.[165] In 2003, SSP became Ahl-e Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ).[166]
By the mid-1990s early financial support Shia activism in Pakistan from the revolutionary government of Iran had "dried up".[167]
Also in the 1990s, Sunni extremists "began to demand" that Shia be declared a "non-Muslim minority", (as the Ahmadiyya had been), so that they were forbidden from calling their places of worship mosques and were subject to laws governing non-Muslims.[168]
Year | Bomb Blasts | Firing Incidents | Urban | Rural | Killed | Injured |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 31 | 6 |
2002 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 29 | 47 |
2003 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 83 | 68 |
2004 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 130 | 250 |
2005 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 91 | 122 |
2006 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 116 | unknown |
2007 | 2 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 442 | 423 |
2008 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 416 | 453 |
2009 | 8 | 27 | 19 | 16 | 381 | 593 |
2010 | 7 | 16 | 16 | 7 | 322 | 639 |
2011 | 2 | 33 | 26 | 9 | 203 | 156 |
2012 | 11 | 310 | 247 | 74 | 630 | 616 |
2013 | 20 | 283 | 269 | 34 | 1222 | 2256 |
2014 | 7 | 262 | 251 | 18 | 361 | 275 |
2015 | 11 | 99 | 100 | 10 | 369 | 400 |
2016 | 2 | 54 | 49 | 7 | 65 | 207 |
2017 | 4 | 34 | 26 | 12 | 308 | 133 |
2018 | 1 | 28 | 24 | 5 | 58 | 50 |
2019 | 2+ | 15+ | 16+ | 1+ | 38+ | 9+ |
The incidents of violence in cities occur more often than in rural areas. This is because the large numbers of people migrating from rural areas to the city, seek refuge in religious organisations to fight the urban culture and to look for new friends of similar rural mindset.[169]
In 2013, in one city alone, the Balochistan capital of Quetta, there were a series of bombings mostly targeting Shia: in January (130 killed, 270 injured), February (91 killed, 190 injured), several in June (26 killed, dozens injured), and August (37 killed, 50+ injured).
Post-2015 era
[edit]According to International Crisis Group "a new era of sectarian conflict" started around 2015. At this point action by the police "decimated" the leadership of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, and its sectarian attacks, (i.e. attacks on Shia), declined.[83] However, in the wake of LeJ's decline "two distinct new forces" rose:
- the Islamic State's "Khorasan Province" (ISKP), and
- the hardline political party and violent protest movement Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (aka Labbaik).
The ISKP has picked up the slack of LeJ's terror, with many of LeJ's foot soldiers joining ISKP despite the fact that their background is Deobandi and ISKP follows Salafi in doctrine.[83]
Labbaik focused primarily on blasphemy, and attacks on not only alleged blasphemers but anyone who defended them. In August 2020, about 42 blasphemy cases were registered, primarily targeting Shias, including a three-year-old Shia child.[170]
In July 2020, the Punjab Legislative Assembly of Pakistan passed the Tahaffuz-e-Bunyad-e-Islam (Protection of Foundation of Islam) Bill, that heightened Sunni-Shia sectarian tensions. The bill made it mandatory for all Pakistani Muslims to revere the historical Muslim figures esteemed by Sunni Muslims, despite the fact that Shia consider some of them usurpers. The passing of the bill sparked outrage among the Shia clergy that the bill was contrary to Shia beliefs.[170]
After Shia clergy made disparaging remarks against historical Islamic figures, televised during the Shia Ashura procession, (Ashura commemorates the Battle of Karbala, which caused the schism in Islam), Sunni groups proclaimed the remarks and any like them intolerable.[171] Thousands of Pakistanis marched at an anti-Shia protest in Karachi, the country's financial hub, on 11 September 2020.[172] Labaik's chief in Karachi reportedly urged his followers to behead people who "blasphemed" against historical figures revered among Sunnis.[28][173]
Other 21st century sectarian issues in Pakistan involving Shia include pressure on the government by Shia activists for the release of "several hundred" Shia thought to have been subject to enforced disappearance. These individuals are often subject to "physical, but especially psychological, torture", kept in dark cells and incommunicado from loved ones, "some are believed to have died in detention".[28] At least 61 people were killed and another 196 injured when a Shia mosque in Peshawar was attacked by a suicide bomber on 4 March 2022. Islamic State (ISKP) claimed responsibility.[174]
Other Shi'i sects
[edit]There are other Shi'i sect in Pakistan—including Ismailis and Bohras—but they have not been as frequently targeted by extremists as the Twelvers, because of their smaller numbers, and tendency to be more affluent and live in close-knit communities.[59] Nevertheless, in May 2015 gunmen boarded a bus carrying Ismaili Shia (there are approximately 500,000 in Pakistan) and massacred at least 45.[59] In other attacks, seven members of the Bohra sect (of which there are less than 100,000 in Pakistan) were killed in September 2012 from two terrorist blasts in a predominantly Bohra market in Karachi. In 2018, two worshipers were killed when another bomb detonated outside a Bohra mosque moments after an evening prayer service.[175]
Ahmadis
[edit]The freedom of religion in Pakistan of Ahmadiyya, i.e. members of the Ahmadi Islamic sect, has been curtailed by a series of ordinances, acts and constitutional amendments, including the Second Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan and Ordinance XX. Ahmadis were declared to be 'Non-Muslims' by the government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1974 under pressure from conservative Sunnis, and this has led to thousands of cases of Ahmadis being charged with various offences for alleged blasphemy and further fueled the sectarian tensions which exist in Pakistan. Some of the worst attacks on Ahmadis have been the
- 1953 Lahore riots, where demonstrations in the city of Lahore in February 1953, escalating into looting, arson and the murder of somewhere between 200[176] and 2000 Ahmadis,[177] and displacement of thousands more.
- 1974 Anti-Ahmadiyya riots, which involving killing, torture, looting, robbery, and burning of Ahmad and their homes, businesses and mosques in localities throughout Pakistan from late May to early September 1974. Following the riots authorities reacted not with a clampdown on the perpetrators but by passing an amendment to the constitution defining Ahmadis as 'non-Muslim',[178] a demand of the rioters which would lead to some Ahmadis losing their jobs or making it difficult to find employment.[179]
- May 2010 attacks on Ahmadi mosques, where 86 people were killed, and more than 100 injured in Lahore, when an Ahmadi mosque and religious center were attacked by gunmen during Friday prayers on 28 May 2010.[180]
In 2014, a prominent Canadian national surgeon, Dr. Mehdi Ali Qamar was killed in front of his family while he was on a humanitarian visit to Pakistan, one of 137 other Ahmadis who were killed in Pakistan from 2010 to 2014.[181]
Following the 2010 Lahore massacre, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, said "Members of this religious community have faced continuous threats, discrimination and violent attacks in Pakistan. There is a real risk that similar violence might happen again unless advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence is adequately addressed. The Government must take every step to ensure the security of members of all religious minorities and their places of worship so as to prevent any recurrence of today's dreadful incident." Ban's spokesperson expressed condemndation and extended his condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government.[182]
Zikris
[edit]Zikri have been victims of discrimination, harassment, forced conversions, attempts to have them declared non-Muslims, and killings. These attacks have flared up from time to time[183][note 16] since before the founding of Pakistan.[189] Recent attacks and insecurity have led sizable numbers of Zikri (like other minorities) to flee from Balochistan to "safer cities in Pakistan like Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad".[190]
Non-Muslims
[edit]The percentage of Pakistan's non-Muslim population has declined from 23% at the time of independence to 3% as of 2017, a trend blamed by some (Farahnaz Ispahani) on General Zia's coup in 1977 which "accelerated the pace toward intolerance of non-Sunni" Muslims.[191]
Christians
[edit]A Christian church in Islamabad was attacked after 11 September 2001, and some Americans were among the dead.
On 22 September 2013, a twin suicide bomb attack took place at All Saints Church[192] in Peshawar, Pakistan, in which 127 people were killed and over 250 injured.[193][194][195][196] On 15 March 2015, two blasts took place at Roman Catholic Church and Christ Church during Sunday service at Youhanabad town of Lahore.[197] At least 15 people were killed and seventy were wounded in the attacks.[198][199]
Hindus
[edit]Hindus in Pakistan have faced persecution due to their religious beliefs. Because of this, some of them choose to take refuge in next-door India.[200][201] According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan data, just around 1000 Hindu families fled to India in 2013,[202] and according to MP Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, as of May 2014, approximately 5000 Hindus are migrating from Pakistan to India every year.[203]
Persecution
[edit]Those Pakistani Hindus who have fled to India allege that Hindu girls are sexually harassed in Pakistani schools, adding that Hindu students are made to read the Quran and that their religious practices are mocked.[204] [note 17]
In the aftermath of the Babri Masjid demolition by Hindus in India, Pakistani Hindus faced riots. Mobs attacked five Hindu temples in Karachi and set fire to 25 temples in towns across the province of Sindh. Shops owned by Hindus were also attacked in Sukkur. Hindu homes and temples were also attacked in Quetta.[207]
In 2005, 32 Hindus were killed by firing from the government side near Nawab Akbar Bugti's residence during bloody clashes between Bugti tribesmen and paramilitary forces in Balochistan. The firing left the Hindu residential locality near Bugti's residence badly hit.[208]
The rise of Taliban insurgency in Pakistan has been an influential and increasing factor in the persecution of and discrimination against religious minorities in Pakistan, such as Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, and other minorities.[209] It is said that there is persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan.[210][211]
In July 2010, around 60 members of the minority Hindu community in Karachi were attacked and evicted from their homes following an incident of a Dalit Hindu youth drinking water from a tap near an Islamic mosque.[212][213]
In January 2014, a policeman standing guard outside a Hindu temple at Peshawar was gunned down.[214] Pakistan's Supreme Court has sought a report from the government on its efforts to ensure access for the minority Hindu community to temples – the Karachi bench of the apex court was hearing applications against the alleged denial of access to the members of the minority community.[215][216][217]
Sikhs
[edit]The Sikh community of Pakistan has faced persecution in the form of targeted killings, forced conversions and denied opportunities.[218][108][219] Sikhs have also been forced to pay the discriminatory jizya tax on non-Muslims. (This traditional Islamic tax was levied on non-Muslims allowing them to continue practicing their faith, but functioning as Protection racket extortion and is levied not by the state of Pakistan but by non-state actors, specifically extremist militants connected with the Taliban.) According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, "several reports have been received of Sikhs being killed in public places for not paying this protection fee."[220]
One result has been the emigration of a large fraction of Pakistan's Sikh population to safer countries, particularly India.[221][222] According to human rights campaigners quoted in India Today, the population of Sikhs in Pakistan has dropped drastically, from 2 million in 1947 to around 40,000 in 2002 and 8,000 in 2019.[218][223]
"Blasphemers"
[edit]From 1947 to 2021, 89 Pakistanis were "extra-judicially killed over blasphemy accusations".[224][225][226] Among the victims (not for blaspheming but for speaking out against blasphemy laws or acquitting those accused) have been the Governor of Punjab, Pakistan's largest province (Salman Taseer),[227] the Federal Minister for Minorities (Shahbaz Bhatti),[228][229] and a high court justice in his chambers (Arif Iqbal Bhatti).[230] Groups accused of blasphemy have not only been non-Muslim minorities and Ahmadiyya, but Shia Muslims. The sectarian group most strongly associated with "exploiting the emotive issue of blasphemy" is Labaik.[28]
The Pakistan Penal Code, the main criminal code of Pakistan, penalizes blasphemy (Urdu: قانون ناموس رسالت) against any recognized religion, providing penalties ranging from a fine to death,[231][226] but the penalty of death has never been carried out under these laws. What has happened is that many of those accused, their lawyers, and anyone speaking against blasphemy laws and proceedings have become victims of lynchings or street vigilantism in Pakistan.
According to human rights groups, blasphemy laws in Pakistan are "overwhelmingly being used to persecute religious minorities and settle personal vendettas,"[232][121] but calls for change in blasphemy laws have been strongly resisted by Islamic parties - most prominently the Barelvi school of Islam.[233]
Among the most prominent cases was the 2011 assassination of Salman Taseer—the governor of Pakistan's largest province (Punjab) at the time and an outspoken critic of Pakistan's blasphemy laws. The year before several Barelvi clerics had given fatwas (religious decree) against Taseer, declaring him wajib-ul-qatal (worthy of death) arguing that he had blasphemed by criticising the blasphemy law and by seeking to obtain a presidential pardon for Asia Bibi, a poor farm worker and Christian who was sentenced to death for blasphemy after Muslim farm workers accused her of insulting Islam during an argument.[28] Taseer was then killed by a man charged with protecting him, his police bodyguard (Mumtaz Qadri).[28] Qadri's execution was greeted by "an outpouring of public sympathy"[234] with protests held across the country and an estimated 100,000 attended his funeral, chanting slogans.[235][236] The Sunni Ittehad Council, a Barelvi group, "glorified" Qadri, a Barelvi, as "an Islamic hero",[28] and militant Barelvi groups found "the powerful message they had previously lacked for mobilising popular support".[28] According to a former top counter-terrorism official quoted by International Crisis Group, Labaik’s success in politicizing blasphemy "is turning so many people into extremists".[237]
More recently, in December 2021, a mob of about 800 in Sialkot, Punjab, set upon Priyantha Kumara, a Sri Lankan national and factory manager who had allegedly torn a poster inscribed with Islamic verses. The mob believed this constituted blasphemy and tortured and bludgeoned to death Kumara before setting his remains on fire.[238][239] Members of the mob proudly told media at the scene that it was a tribute to Muhammad. [240][241]
During the Muharram of 2020, blasphemy accusations spread to Shia, particularly in Karachi. Section 295-A of the blasphemy law (in effect in the colonial era, before Pakistani independence), which punishes "[d]eliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs", was sited to allege offences by Shia, including display of the seemingly benign "common Shia incantation", Ya Ali, (which calls on Ali but does not disparage any beloved by Sunnis) "on the front of a Shia family’s house".[28]
See also
[edit]- Iran-Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
- Anti-Bihari sentiment
- Blasphemy in Pakistan
- International propagation of Salafism and Wahhabism
- Islamic fundamentalism
- Islamic fundamentalism in Iran
- Islamism
- Islam in Pakistan
- Minorities in Pakistan
- Pakistani demographics
- Persecution of Ahmadis
- Persecution of minority Muslim groups
- Persecution of Shia Muslims
- Persecution of Hindus
- Religion in Pakistan
- Freedom of religion in Pakistan
- Religious discrimination in Pakistan
- Sectarian violence among Muslims
- Shia–Sunni relations
- Sufi–Salafi relations
- Sunni Tehreek
- Tehrik-e-Jafria
- 2003 Quetta mosque bombing
- September 2010 Quetta bombing
- Takfir
- Pakistani textbooks controversy
Notes
[edit]- ^ On the other hand, the CIA Factbook estimates Sunnis make up 85-90% of the Muslim population and Shia 10-15%. [26]
- ^ example of distinguishing between sectarian and ethnic violence: "As discussed earlier, the 9/11 incident is considered as an important landmark in a strategic policy shift that pushed Pakistan to face a historically severe wave of terrorism. It was not just sectarian or ethnic terrorism but stretched out to target military barracks, defence installations, ..."[39]
- ^ "Three sources reported word for word that 'discriminatory religious legislation has encouraged an atmosphere of religious intolerance, which has led to acts of violence directed against minority Muslim sects, as well as against Christians, Hindus, and members of Muslim offshoot sects such as Ahmadis and Zikris' (Country Reports 1997, 1998; IND Mar. 1999, 29; Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 1999 9 Sept. 1999). The 9 September 1999 US Department of State publication Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 1999 added that "police at times refuse to prevent such actions or to charge persons who commit them."[40] see also: Baloch, Kiyya (12 November 2014). "Who Is Responsible for Persecuting Pakistan's Minorities? Islamists in Balochistan are targeting minorities, yet NGOs are beginning to blame the government too". The Diplomat. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
- ^ "In 1985, however, in an effort to promote Sunni orthodoxy, Zia’s regime backed the creation in Jhang of a Deobandi group called Sipahe-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP)"[28]
- ^ "Along with attacking Shias, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi also assassinated or threatened Punjab police investigating its crimes.[41] As the sectarian outfit challenged the state’s writ in Punjab, the country’s largest province and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s ... . Those efforts picked up after Lashkar-e-Jhangvi tried to assassinate Sharif in January 1999.[42]
- ^ for example "according to a Shia political leader, the number of [Shia] people missing [because of "enforced disappearances" by the security services] has decreased to fewer than 50 from a high of several hundred; some are believed to have died in detention")[28]
- ^ An example being a July 1987 fight in Parachinar, where Sunni conservative Sunni Mujahideen attacked local Shia armed with locally made automatic rifles.[43] Reportedly 52 Shia and 120 Sunni attackers lost their lives in several days of fighting.[44]
- ^ The 1998 Pakistani census states that there are 291,000 (0.22%) Ahmadis in Pakistan. However, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has boycotted the census since 1974 which renders official Pakistani figures to be inaccurate. Independent groups have estimated the Pakistani Ahmadiyya population to be somewhere between 2 million and 5 million Ahmadis. However, the 4 million figure is the most quoted figure and is approximately 2.2% of the country. See:
- ^ "Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has complained that her country got stuck with its gun problem as a direct result of cooperation with the United States in forcing Soviet troops from Afghanistan. 'We are left on our own to cope with the remnants of the Afghan war, which include arms smuggling . . . drugs and . . . {religious} zealots who were leaders at the time of the Afghan war,'" [91]
- ^ Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) in 1985, or from Tanzim-e-Ahlesunnat (TAS) in the 1980s[85]
- ^ 4800 comes from South Asia Terrorism Portal;[123] the blog "Let us build Pakistan" (LUBP), states a much larger number of Shia Muslims were killed over a longer period -- 24,306 killed from 1955 to 30 June 2021. (The number is based on reports in the "mainstream media" and may exclude some deaths "due to paucity of resources, fear of victimization, and lack of communication networks in many areas").[124]
- ^ Jinnah was of a Gujarati Khoja Nizari Isma'ili Shi’a Muslim background, though he later followed the Twelver Shi'a teachings,[127][128]
- ^ After the death of Jinnah, Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan, allied with the ulema and passed the Objectives Resolution which adopted the Islam as state religion. Jinnah's appointed law minister, Jogendra Nath Mandal, resigned from his post. Shias of Pakistan allege discrimination by the Pakistani government since 1948, claiming that Sunnis are given preference in business, official positions and administration of justice.[132]
- ^ Among those in Tanzim-e-Ahle-Sunnat (TAS) or Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI), preaching against Shi'i rituals of Azadari were: Molana Noorul Hasan Bukhari, Molana Dost Muhammad Qureshi, Molana Abdus Sattar Taunsavi, Molana Mufti Mahmood, Molana Abdul Haq Haqqani, Molana Sarfaraz Khan Safdar Gakharvi, and Molana Manzoor Ahmad Naumani.
- ^ Mahmood Ahmad Abbasi, Abu Yazid Butt, Qamar-ud-Din Sialvi and others wrote books against Shias.
- ^ "The Zikri question has become one of the leading issues during last few years which mobilized enormous resistance by the religious groups, particularly the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), in Balochistan" [184][185][186][187][188]
- ^ The Indian government is planning to issue Aadhaar cards and PAN cards to Pakistani Hindu refugees, and simplifying the process by which they can acquire Indian citizenship.[205]
- ^ Separate electorates for Hindus and Christians were established in 1985 – a policy originally proposed by Islamist leader Abul A'la Maududi. Christian and Hindu leaders complained that they felt excluded from the county's political process, but the policy had strong support from Islamists.[206]
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