Taliban terror in Pakistan is extreme nowadays, encouraging sect violence. Since its inception, the Taliban were associated with fear, terror, torture and inhuman activities. But more recently, particularly after the short lived agreement with Pakistan government to implement Shariah law in Swat, the Taliban made Islamabad their next target. This wish of spreading Taliban rule in Pakistan was checked by Pakistan, America and the world. After that, what happened should have happened much earlier. The Pakistan army, instead of wasting time on the Indian border, had to fight the Taliban in Swat and other affected regions. This Pakistan army operation is ongoing and there is news of Taliban suffering huge losses.
Enraged by the Pakistan army operations, the Taliban are now targeting, by a pre-planned strategy, several military and security centres in Pakistan, and continuously targeting the security personnel by suicide operations. In the past few days, a suicide attack near an ISI office, and prior to that, an attack on the police training centre in Lahore, have come as a challenge by the Taliban to the security apparatus of Pakistan.
But the more unfortunate thing is that this inhuman Taliban has now started targeting the religious buildings like mosques and madrassas. They target the mosques and madrassas of groups or sects who are not supportive of their extremist and inhuman ideology. Clearly stating, a Taliban ideologue so called ‘Muslim’ fighter is the enemy of every sect of Muslims.
On 12 June, there were two different suicide attacks in Lahore and Naushera cities in Pakistan. The Naushera blast destroyed the whole mosque. The blast in Lahore was in a Madrassa named Jamia Naimia. It killed 11 people including the chief of the Madrassa and famous liberal cleric Mufti Naim. Mufti Naim was related to the Barelvi sect of the Muslim community, the second largest sect of Muslims.
Maulana Naim used to publicly curse the Taliban for its anti-Islamic activities. He would say that none of the activities of the Taliban is as a result of Islamic teachings. He condemned the suicide attacks by the Taliban. Like a common man, Mufti Naim was also hurt by the violent and cruel actions of the Taliban. He fully supported the Pakistan army’s operation against the Taliban in Swat. Furious Taliban finally found a way to make him silent. Will this incident suppress the voice raised by Mufti Naim?
This is not the first incidence of sect violence by the Taliban. Prior to this, the Taliban carried out attacks on the mosques and religious places of the Ahmadi, Sufi, Shia and Barelvi sects, in which, along with common people innumerable devotees have also been killed. In this situation, the common people of Pakistan are indecisive of doing anything.
Either they bow down to the militant, cruel and inhuman Taliban or get ready to give them a befitting reply in their language. Or be ready to be killed in any of the suicide attacks carried out by the Taliban?
Now, the people affected by the Taliban, living in and near Peshawar, have lost their patience. Some time back, a mosque was attacked by the Taliban during prayer time in this area, which killed 49 devotees. This incident provoked the local people against the Taliban. Finally, people gathered against the Taliban.
One day when the people got the information of the Taliban fighters hiding in a nearby area of Peshawar, they got together and captured the homes where the Taliban fighters were hiding. They killed six Taliban fighters along with their commander. Villagers set their hideouts on fire and also ransacked the homes where they were hiding. This incident has encouraged the peace loving anti-Taliban people and there is feeling that in the entire Pakistan, particularly the Pak-Afghan border, people have made their minds to counter together these cruel actions.
There is no doubt that the Taliban and related ideologies present a threat to the whole of mankind. In its history of 1400 years, Islam was once degraded during the incident of Karbala, by the ideology of Yazeed. And now it is being insulted since the last two decades by the ideologues of the Taliban, Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations, and the suicide attacks carried out by them. Asif Ali Zardari the President of Pakistan, the nation formed in the name of Islamic Republic, said recently that Pakistan is fighting for its survival and they’ll be fight the Taliban until ‘the finish’. Zardari has announced to double the salaries of the army to get them to fight against the Taliban to the end.
Not only in Pakistan, a common Muslim anywhere in the world, is a strict opponent of the Taliban and its ideology. But now the time has come that this feeling of dissent should not be kept in hearts and minds, rather, to protect Islam and its peaceful ideals, this is essential they get together against the anti-Islam and anti-humane actions of the Taliban. And wherever this ideology seems to be raising its head, it should be crushed there, otherwise today a cleric of the Barelvi sect is killed by them, tomorrow would be turn of the cleric of another sect.
