Minister says Israel’s Mossad fueling sectarianism in Pakistan through social media
SAIMA SHABBIR
August 11, 2020
Pakistan’s Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noorul Haq Qadri during a press conference on Aug. 11, 2020.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noorul Haq Qadri claimed on Tuesday that Israel’s secret service, Mossad, was trying to spread sectarianism in Pakistan by using fake social media accounts.
“A female Mossad operative in Israel is spreading sectarian material in Pakistan by using a fake account,” he told a gathering organized by the Council of Islamic Ideology in Islamabad to commemorate the National Minorities Day. “This woman identifies herself as Aisha, has good command of Arabic, and regularly shares sectarian material on social media.”
The minister did not provide further details, and Arab News could not independently verify his claim. However, he added that “ignorant people” using these platforms spread the material without considering its implications.
Addressing the event that focused on pluralism and sectarian harmony, he said that the government had organized the convention to raise awareness about this issue and request scholars and general public not to fall for the Israeli conspiracy.
“We have noticed that blasphemous material related to sacred religious personalities gets frequently distributed [on social media]. It’s all planned,” he warned.
“For four decades, the conspiracy to destabilize Pakistan along linguistic, religious and ethnic lines has failed,” Qadri said. “Now the last attempt is a conspiracy to spread riots among Shias, Sunnis, Barelvis, Deobandis and Salafis.”
The minister said that the Council of Islamic Ideology should introduce a “new national charter” to promote harmony and understanding among different sects.
“The Muttahida Ulema Board Punjab, Milli Yakjehti Council and Inter-Faith Harmony Committee have made separate efforts to eradicate sectarianism. The Council of Islamic Ideology should put all these efforts together in the form of a new national charter,” he added.
“The state will maintain its writ in any case,” Qadri continued. “It is unfortunate that administrative officials have been urging scholars to remain peaceful before the arrival of Muharram [the first month of the Islamic calendar] since scholars should do it themselves.”
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