Politicians, others condemn 'shameful' incident at Masjid-e-Nabwi

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, federal ministers and parliamentarians on Thursday were confronted and heckled at the Masjid-e-Nabwi in Madina during their visit, as Pakistani pilgrims chanted slogans of “chor” (thieves) at the group.

The delegation consisting of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Miftah Ismail, Shahzain Bugti, Marriyum Aurangzeb, Khawaja Asif, Chaudhry Salik Hussain, Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and Mohsin Dawar, arrived in Saudi Arabia at the invitation of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

As officials went to the holy site to offer prayers, they were provoked by a mob chanting slogans against the new regime.

As videos of the enraged crowd went viral on social media, participants faced condemnation from public figures who criticised the pilgrim’s abhorrent behaviour within one of Islam’s holiest sites.

Political leaders and celebrities took to the micro-blogging site Twitter to oppose the act.

Read Shehbaz begins Saudi visit with prayers in Madina

'Shameful' incident

Information Minister Marriyam Aurangzeb released a statement condemning the act, stating that the event was orchestrated by a "select group". She added that while most Pakistanis respected the sanctity of the mosque she did not want to name the "person responsible for this incident" because she did not want to use the holy land for political means.

The minister added that she prayed for the unity of the Pakistani society, "it will take time for us to fix the damage done to our society but we will do it with a positive attitude."

Religious scholar Mulana Tariq Jamil also condemned the act, stating it was a "violation" of the sacred mosque and the form of protest was not acceptable in Islam.

Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, sister of the recently appointed foreign minister, deemed the attack on senior ministers at Masjid-e-Nabwi "shameful", in a two-part tweet.

She accused the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and former premier Imran Khan of inciting intolerance and divisiveness within the country. "Imran Khan's inflated ego is leading Pakistan down a very dark path," Aseefa said, adding that "shame and serious introspection" is required for the "cultists".

Cricketer and philanthropist Shahid Afridi also took to Twitter to condemn the event stating that the holy site was a place "where it is forbidden to raise one's voice."

"We forgot its sanctity in order to fulfill our political enmities," the cricketer stated adding that while those who chanted the slogans may be identified, they had managed to damage the identity of Pakistan irreparably.

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail claimed that the event marked a "new low in Pakistani politics," deeming the act "beneath contempt and beyond shameless."

PTI General-Secretary and former planning minister Asad Umar also urged restraint stating, "we are aware of the grief and anger of the people, but we must respect the sanctity of the holy places."

Journalist and anchorperson Kamran Yousaf commented on the reaction of the PTI leadership claiming that the "embarrassing incident at Masjid-e-Nabwi was first proudly shared by the PTI leaders but after the public reaction, they realised that they may have gone too far in blind imitation of Imran Khan."