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1. Christian Activists Affirm Trust in
Islamic
Leadership
2. Hikmatyar's Open Defiance
On December 28, New Trend's rep. Interviewed two Christian activists
in Peshawar, Pakistan, named Javed Gill and Pervez Sadiq. The two
activists affirmed that the attack on a church in Daska could not possibly
be connected to Islam because Islam protects Christian places of
worship. Christians, both said, are of the view that the attack must be the
work of Indian intelligence agents fom RAW.
The two told New Trend that Muslims and Christians are friends
and there is no question of conflict between them. In fact on Christmas
Day, representative of the new Islamic governmen in Frontier Province.
Senior Minister Sirajul Haq, who follows the sunnah in his personal
life, visited a church and cut a cake to celebrate Jesus (pbuh) with the
Christians of Peshawar.
Ed. Note: The government of Pakistan is tying to pin blame for the
attack on the imam of a local mosque and has arrested him. The wife of the
imam has protested the arrest and told Pakistani media that her husband
has never preached violence against anyone and certainly not against
Christians. (Source:
Daily Khaibrain,
Dec. 27, published from Islamabad.
Once again the Jihad movement, Jamat ad-Da'wa, has condemned the
attack on the church as a clear violation of Islamic law and spirit.
HIKMATYAR's LATEST MOVE: OPEN ALLIANCE WITH AL-QAIDA.
Daily KHABRAIN of Islamabad, a "moderate" Pakistani newspaper,
reported on December 27, that Afghan leader of Hizbe Islami, hiding
in the mountains, has declared an open alliance with Al-Qaida. In a
statement distributed in tribal areas bordering Pakistan, Hikmatyar
declares that the time has come for this coalition to strike hard and
unitedly at U.S. forces in
Afghanistan.
Readers might recall that U.S.
media
have reported (very briefly)
a string of attacks on occupation forces during the first two weeks of
December. One U.S. soldier was reportedly killed in Kabul as were SEVEN
Germans in a downed helicopter. [Islamic media say the U.S. losses are
much higher.
SHOULD HIKMATYAR'S THREATS BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY? Kabul is taking it
seriously. The Karzai government's news agency, Bakhtar, has issued a
diatribe against Hikmatyar, accusing him of all kinds of crimes. Bakhtar
sounds almost like a replay of Communist propaganda against the
mujahideen during the jihad against USSR.
On December 29, KHABRAIN reported that Hikmatyar actually met Mullah
Umar in Oruzgan province on Eid-ul-fitr to work out the alliance. The
report is attributed to an Islamic militant named Maulvi Ubaidullah who
met a private TV channel rep at a secret spot in Afghanistan.
[Previouslu Hikmatyar had refused to hookup with Taliban and Al-Qaida.]
The Hikmatyar moves come as a surprise because Pakisanis in many
positions have been saying that the Taliban are finished. The report
indirectly indicates that Mullah Omar is alive and active in the Jihad.
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2002-12-29 Sun 08:59ct