Jamia Hafsa Update

In Pakistan Ghazi remains defiant of the government, and warns the government not to consider a crackdown. This comes after he delivered an ultimatum to them just yesterday, and has kidnapped police, abducted citizens of Islamabad and their children, and threatened shop owners and passers-by all around his extremist madrassa in the Capital.

In Pakistan Ghazi remains defiant of the government, and warns the government not to consider a crackdown. This comes after he delivered an ultimatum to them just yesterday, and has kidnapped police, abducted citizens of Islamabad and their children, and threatened shop owners and passers-by all around his extremist madrassa in the Capital.

This madrassah has an army of students (estimated at 7,000 combining the male and female students) that assemble at short order wielding batons and canes.

From The Daily Times:

ISLAMABAD: The management of Jamia Hafsa on Monday warned the government not to consider any crackdown on the madrassa, saying its students were ready to face any challenge. Abdur Rashid Ghazi, vice principal of Jamia Hafsa and Jamia Faridia, said they would continue their campaign against the government until their demands for the reconstruction of demolished mosques in the capital were met. “Yes, we know the government is set to crack down on the madrassa students to vacate the children’s library,” he said. Madrassa students took over the library in January in protest at the demolition of mosques. Ghazi claimed that intelligence agencies were trying to malign Lal Masjid and the two madrassas “for Islamisation” and for taking action against Shamim Akhtar, who allegedly ran a brothel.

This is election season in Pakistan, and Musharaaf is under assault from many directions. Benazir Bhutto’s corrupt party (remember: the Taliban was created by Bhutto’s ISI chief, Hamid Gul,) the PPP, is talking of returning her. The Taliban’s political wing in Pakistan, The MMA, is also agitating, the Chief Justice situation also has academics and lawyers demonstrating, and on top of that there’s a war of expulsion in Wana.

UPDATE: Daily Times is now reporting that Jamia Hafsa Vice Principal Abdur Rashid Ghazi has gone into hiding. (Hat tip to Bill Roggio’s excellent news sidebar at The Fourth Rail.)

Previously:

Crows Come Home to Roost, Extremist Roots in Islamabad