Parachinar: The Takfirist War and Salafist Violence against Shiites in Pakistan and its Implications

By Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi, New Age Islam 5 August 2024 The Indiscriminate Killing of Shias (Shi'ites) By Takfiri Terrorists in Pakistan Reveals That a Violent Sectarian Salafist and Sufiyanist Ideology Has Historically Been On the Rampage. These Terror Attacks Started in The Decade After the Famous Inquilab-E-Imam Khomeini (The 1979 Islamic Revolution) In Iran. By Backing and Sponsoring Radical Sunni-Salafist Organizations, Pakistan and Other Theocratic Regimes (The So-Called ‘Islamic Nations’) Have Only Exacerbated Shi'ite-Sunni Strife. The Recent Killing of Around Fifty Shia Muslim Minority Members in Parachinar, A Pakistani Town Situated Along the Border of Afghanistan, Can Be Seen in This Backdrop. The Increasing Influence and Ideological Power and Prowess of the Anti-Shia Terror Organizations in Pakistan Comes Not Just from Their Theological Fervour, But Also Due to Pakistan's Complex Political Environment. ------ The recent killing of Shias [Shi'ite Muslim minority] in Parachinar, a Pakistani town situated along the border of Afghanistan, was brutal and gruesome. The roots of Takfirist terrorism and sectarian violence are deeply seated and historically rooted in the Sunni-majority so-called ‘Islamic’ Republic of Pakistan. Apart from the religiously biased and dangerously erroneous sectarian policies of the Zia regime, the violent sectarian Salafist ideology underpinned by the ‘Sufiyanist’ mind-set is also behind the current killings of the Shia minority. A young girl sits under the shade of a tree in Parachinar. ----- The group which is being held responsible for orchestrating and instigating the anti-Shia violence and indiscriminate killings is “Sipah-e-Sahaba” which translates as "Soldiers of the Prophet’s Companions ". Another anti-Shia terror outfit that was born out of the same group is called, “Lashkar-e-Jhangvi” (LeJ)—the known Pakistani Sunni militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi actively involved in escalating the Shia-Sunni tensions across the border. As the two terror groups hold Salafi beliefs, they harbour extremely sectarian anti-Shia tendencies. Mainly from various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Bajaur, Orakzai, Kohat, and South Waziristan, these anti-Shia terror groups comprise militants from predominantly from the Sunni belt in Mastung, Quetta, Nushki and Khuzdar regions, as well as parts of northern Sindh. Their anti-Shia agenda is inspired not just by these two groups but by scores of sectarian material, extremist sermons, literature and publications widely promoted in these regions. As a result, over the two decades, there has been a dramatic escalation in the anti-Shia terror attacks in Pakistan, with 2012 as the worst year in living memory for Shia killings. But what we saw with horror a few days ago in Pakistan's lawless north-western frontier area on the border of Afghanistan is no less terror-provoking. A land dispute snowballed into a deadly Sunni-Shia clash, killing nearly 50 and 200 injured. These killings allude to two curiously ignored facts: One, there is another ‘Palestine’ perpetuated in Pakistan where innocent people (Shi'ite Muslims) are getting indiscriminately killed. Two, while the Sunni Muslim majority of Pakistan and other Islamic nations look toward Palestine and castigate Israel for the massacre and murder of the innocent Palestinian people, by maintaining complete silence over the genocide of the Shi'ite minority, they undermine and tacitly support it. Barring Iran and the Shia Muslim population in Pakistan and India, who took to the streets to protest against sectarian violence in the Parachinar region, no visible protest was seen in favour of this ‘Palestine’ within Pakistan. The whole Muslim world looks away (or shies away) from the ongoing mass murder of Shi'ite Muslims in Parachinar. Tellingly, Iran patently calls it a ‘Takfirist terror attack” and has castigated and categorically condemned it in an official statement, saying it had systematically targeted Shia Muslims in Pakistan. Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani released this statement on Wednesday. But audaciously and unabashedly, without taking the situation into introspection, Pakistan rebuffed it and said: “Such statements about Pakistan’s domestic affairs are therefore unwarranted”. Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (MoFA) said it during a weekly press briefing. On the other hand, some people have taken to the streets, from Kashmir to London, to protest sectarian violence against the Shi'ite Muslims in Pakistan. The demonstrators urged the Pakistani government to take measures to stop the violent attacks against the minority community. The Shia community in Parachinar has been subjected to mass killing and genocide, leaving numerous fatalities and grave implications. First and foremost, Parachinar is a Pakistani town situated along the border of Afghanistan, where the Pakistani Taliban, Lashkar-e-Jhangi, and other Sunni-Salafist and some Deobandi-origin extremist groups have been systematically targeting Shia Muslims over the years. In an obnoxiously anti-Shia atmosphere fuelled by the Salafist culture, common Sunni Muslims often hatch up fake charges against the religious minority members to instigate violence and perpetuate an antagonistic environment against them to seize their land and property. This is precisely what has happened in the recent incident of Shia-killing in Parachinar. But the increasing influence and ideological power and prowess of the anti-Shia terror organizations in Pakistan come not just from their theological fervor, but also due to Pakistan's complex political environment. Pakistani columnist Syed Mahdi has pointed out recently in Dawn that Parachinar which was used as the base camp for fighting against Russia in the 80's due to its unique location, has a critical importance. Land was needed to train fighters in these camps, for which Gen. Zia-ul-Haq started to use people's lands. Since then, people in Parachinar have protested against the usurpation of their land. In response, the anti-Shia clashes were orchestrated by the Pakistani regime and several Sunni militant groups such as Jundullah and Sipah-e-Sahaba were used for fuelling sectarianism in Pakistan. As a result, the fire of sectarian tensions caught a large number of people. The Salafist ideology was promoted during this period because Saudi Arabia was a major stakeholder in the Russia-Afghan War. Before Zia's ideology, the Barelvi school of thought was more active at the local level in the country which was favoured as it was away from war and conflict. Since the Salafi ideology emphasizes war and violence, it has been used to target the Shias in Pakistan, while strengthening the neo-Sunnis of Pakistan and Afghanistan considered close to the Sufiyani ideology. This is just a brief historical and theological background of the current killing and violence targeted against the Shiites in Parachinar. There have been conflicts between religious and sectarian groups in this area since the beginning. Consequently, many Shiites have lost their lives. The bloody clashes between two tribes in the city of Parachinar have severely affected the atmosphere of peace and security in this region, and the Shia groups of Pakistan are not yet protected from the attacks of the Takfirist elements. Ideological collusion and nexus of these elements with the Pakistan-based terrorists are systematically nurtured to target the common Shia civilians under the pretext of conflicts over land and properties. Today, Pakistan, the Pakistani establishment, military and people of Pakistan are vociferously speaking for the Palestinians the world over. But when it comes to the ‘Palestine’ and ‘Palestinians’ at home; Parachinar and the minority Shi'ites being killed, they aren’t vocal there. More ironically, Pakistan's age-old strategy on Palestine has also been dubious. It played a pernicious role in the killing of Palestinians during the Black September of 1970. Thousands of Palestinians, with some estimates putting the number at 10,000-25,000, were mercilessly killed. Pakistan's then military dictator, Gen. Zia-ul-Haq, was posted in Jordan as Military Officer. Now take a look at his insidious role! Sarah Waheed writes in her book, “Hidden Histories of Pakistan”: "In September 1970, Zia led Jordanian troops to crush a Palestinian uprising under King Hussain, and between five and seven thousand Palestinians were killed: the month became known as 'Black September'. Zia, however, was awarded the highest Jordanian honour, returning home to Pakistan in triumph, where he was promoted as a corps commander in Punjab." The same establishment that in Zia-ul-Haq’s regime helped train the Jordanian army to kill the Palestinians, and therefore many even called the Pakistani military dictator a 'butcher' of Palestinians, is masquerading today as a ‘crusader’ of Palestine. An echo of what Faiz Ahmad Faiz said over half a century ago is still reverberating in the ‘Palestine of Pakistan’—Parachinar: Koi Masiha Na Ifai-e-Aahad Ko Phncha Bahot Talash Pas-e-Qatl-e-Aam Hoti Rahi Translation: No messiah arrived to provide relief, but after the carnage much investigation took place. ----- A Regular Columnist with Newageislam.com, Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi is an Indo-Islamic scholar, Sufi poet and English-Arabic-Urdu-Hindi writer with a background in a leading Sufi Islamic seminary in India. He is currently serving as Head of International Affairs at Voice for Peace & Justice, Jammu & Kashmir. URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-sectarianism/parachinar-takfirist-war-salafist-violence-shiites-pakistan-/d/132863 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism