Defining ‘jihad’: Hizbul Mujahideen commander dismays local ‘jihadi’ outfits
He believes that those who attack mosques, schools, women and children are enemies of Islam
“Those who are responsible for attacking mosques, schools, women and children are the enemies of Islam and Pakistan,” said Salahuddin. “They are not mujahideen.” PHOTO: INP
KARACHI:
Syed Salahuddin, the supreme commander of Hizbul Mujahideen [Party of Holy Warriors] in Kashmir, has declared that attacks on places of worship, women and children are contrary to the teachings of Islam.
Salahuddin, who came to Karachi with a disconcerting message for the self-proclaimed local ‘jihadi’ outfits, was addressing a press conference at the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) headquarters in Karachi, Idara-e-Noor Haq, on Friday.
“Those who are responsible for attacking mosques, schools, women and children are the enemies of Islam and Pakistan,” he said. “They are not mujahideen.”
Since 1991, he is reverentially known as ‘Pir Sahib’ among the ranks of freedom fighters. This reverence, though, is not limited to his party as he also heads the Muttahida Jihad Council, a conglomerate of 19 jihadi organisations formed in 1994 to unify and focus efforts in the Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Salahuddin, it was the responsibility of Pakistan’s leadership to unequivocally address the Kashmir issue at all possible fronts. “We believe that a three-party, time-bound and Kashmir-centric dialogue is the only solution to resolve this long-lasting dispute,” he said, adding that India will first have to accept the Kashmiri people as the primary and principal party to the dispute, and Kashmir itself as a disputed territory.
According to him, India has miserably failed to crush the 68-year-old freedom movement in Kashmir despite all possible efforts. He also picked on United States President Barack Obama who, he believed, had single-handedly bulldozed around 18 resolutions of the United Nations (UN) on the Kashmir issue by endorsing India for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2015.
Syed Salahuddin, the supreme commander of Hizbul Mujahideen [Party of Holy Warriors] in Kashmir, has declared that attacks on places of worship, women and children are contrary to the teachings of Islam.
Salahuddin, who came to Karachi with a disconcerting message for the self-proclaimed local ‘jihadi’ outfits, was addressing a press conference at the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) headquarters in Karachi, Idara-e-Noor Haq, on Friday.
“Those who are responsible for attacking mosques, schools, women and children are the enemies of Islam and Pakistan,” he said. “They are not mujahideen.”
Since 1991, he is reverentially known as ‘Pir Sahib’ among the ranks of freedom fighters. This reverence, though, is not limited to his party as he also heads the Muttahida Jihad Council, a conglomerate of 19 jihadi organisations formed in 1994 to unify and focus efforts in the Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Salahuddin, it was the responsibility of Pakistan’s leadership to unequivocally address the Kashmir issue at all possible fronts. “We believe that a three-party, time-bound and Kashmir-centric dialogue is the only solution to resolve this long-lasting dispute,” he said, adding that India will first have to accept the Kashmiri people as the primary and principal party to the dispute, and Kashmir itself as a disputed territory.
According to him, India has miserably failed to crush the 68-year-old freedom movement in Kashmir despite all possible efforts. He also picked on United States President Barack Obama who, he believed, had single-handedly bulldozed around 18 resolutions of the United Nations (UN) on the Kashmir issue by endorsing India for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2015.