Relatives of Tashfeen Malik, the woman involved in what has been classified as a terrorist attack in the United States, have said that she became more hardline after her time in Saudi Arabia. Her hardline views, according to them, were developed when she lived in the country. Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik died in a shoot-out after killing 14 people in San Bernardino in California. Within the last 48 hours, the terror group IS has claimed the couple as their followers though investigators have suggested that there were no external links to the couple and that the plot to kill had been concocted by the couple themselves. Malik’s Pakistani relatives have suggested that her father cut off contact with his family in Pakistan due to a feud over inheritance and he moved to Saudi Arabia when his daughter was very young. Reuters has noted that school teacher, Hifza Bibi, the step-sister of Malik’s father who lives in the Punjab said: “From what we have heard, they lived differently, their mindset is different. We are from a land of Sufi saints and this is very shocking for us.” Time in Pakistan Ms Malik, 29, returned from Saudi Arabia to [...]
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Dr. Imam Mamadou Bocoum is a holder of two Masters and a PhD from The Muslim College, and Heythrop College, University of London. He is a lecturer in Islamic Studies; a Board member of the Muslim Law Council UK and an interfaith consultant. He is currently a consultant at Faith Matters and Tell Mama. Mamadou has authored a number of written works which have included: The Position of Jews and Christians in the Qur’an; Faith and Citizenship in Islam; The status of Women in Islam; Islamic Fundamentalism and the Qur’an. He can be reached at mbocoum@yahoo.com; Mamadou@tellmamauk.org. Jews and Christians are referred to as Ahl al-Kitab (People of the Book), and are characterised in the Qur’an as those to whom divine revelations have been given prior to the advent of Islam. The Qur’anic reference Ahl al-Kitab indicates that they possess divine scriptures in much the same way Muslims do. The term Ahl al-Kitab made 32 appearances in the Qur’an. Some Muslims, however, and a number of Muslim commentators mainly with a literalistic reading of the Qur’an, argue that Muslims should have nothing to do with the Ahl al-Kitab. The latter, some Muslims argue, should convert to Islam because their religions [...]
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Continue ReadingThe Supreme Court of Pakistan recently suspended the execution of Asia Bibi – the Christian mother-of-five convicted on alleged blasphemy charges that reportedly started over a glass of water. It sounds positive, as historically Pakistani courts seemed to be under enormous pressure whenever it came to blasphemy related cases. One of the judges of the same court, Justice Arif Iqbal Bhatti, was assassinated in 1997 after he acquitted two Christians, Salamat Masih and Rehmat Masih, in a blasphemy case because of insufficient evidence. According to various reports, 1274 people have been charged with blasphemy between 1986 and 2010 – 51 accused have been murdered before finishing their respective trials. With that in mind, it is possible to see how the above potentially influenced the decision to uphold Asia Bibi’s death penalty conviction last year (without any credible evidence). The above numbers signify a horrific picture for the fate of anyone accused of breaching blasphemy laws in Pakistan. Whatever the courts decide about the case, the religious fanatics rarely allow them to survive. Not only are the accused at risk; but their supporters and lawyers are targets and killers are sometimes glorified. Under these circumstances, no one should think that Asia [...]
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