Evolving Dynamics of Violent Takfirism in Pakistan
Keywords:
Pakistan, Takfiri Ideology, Minority Communities, Religious Extremism, National Harmony
Abstract
The Takfiri ideology developing in different phases in Pakistan, poses a significant threat to smaller religious groups including vulnerable communities within Muslim society and non-Muslim minorities and state’s security institutions as well. The Takfirism is a minority ideology based on an extremist interpretation of Islam, which declares other Muslims and non-Muslims as Kafir (infidels or non-believers), has fuelled sectarian violence, targeted killings, marginalization of minority communities in the society and terrorist attacks on state’s security forces.
This study explores the historical evolution of ideological intolerance based on Takfirism in Pakistan, its spread through sectarian organizations and religious extremist and Takfiri groups in three phases of post Afghan Jihad, post 9/11 and post Arab spring eras. The research employs a qualitative approach, analysing primary sources, documents, and scholarly works to identify the ideological footings and means of the violent Takfiri proliferation. The findings highlight the role of Afghan Jihad, Islamisation of Pakistan, growing number of unregistered madrassas and growth of fierce sectarian and extremist groups and the state’s shaky response in the diffusing Takfiri narratives in aforementioned periods.
Furthermore, the study underlines the socio-political consequences of this ideology, including increased division, destruction of interreligious trust, and weakening national unity.
Apart from military action, the paper concludes by presenting some policy recommendations to counter violent Takfiri ideology through meaningful educational reforms, strengthened rules to stop hate speech, and fostering interfaith discourse. This research contributes to understanding religious Takfirism and its impact in the society in Pakistan and offers useful guidelines for the concerned authorities, religious leaders, and civil society to foil threats of violent Takfirism to minorized religious and sectarian communities and preserve societal harmony and security of the country.
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Shah, S. S. H. (2022). The impact of violent religious extremism on various cultural components of Pakistani society. The Journal of Education, Culture, and Society, 13(2), 107–118.
Shah, SSH, Mahmood, A. (2022). Post 2019 Spike in Terrorism: A Threat to Internal Security of Pakistan. Journal of Security & Strategic Analyses, 8(2):53-79. doi: 10.57169/jssa.008.02.0194.
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South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP). (n.d.). Sipah-e-Mohammed Pakistan. https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/smp.htm.
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Suhaib, A. Q., & Adnan, M. (2020). Religious Extremism and Online Radicalization in Pakistan: How to Counter the Trend? Islamic Studies, 59(2), 239–254. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27088390.
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BBC News. (2010, July 1a). Pakistan suicide bombers kill dozens in Lahore. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/10483453.
BBC News. (2010, October 8b). Blasts kill dozens in Karachi during rally for politician. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-11495500.
BBC News. (2011, May 13a). Pakistan: Gunmen kill at least 13 in attack on bus in Karachi. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-13385597.
BBC News. (2011, May 23b). Pakistan: Troops end attack on Karachi naval air base. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-13495127.
BBC News. (2013, February 17). Pakistan: Dozens dead in bomb attack on Quetta market. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-21485731.
BBC News. (2016, November 13). Pakistan Shah Noorani shrine bomb kills 52. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/37962741.
BBC News. (2017, December 20). Pakistan attack: Who are the militants killing Shias? Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42409374.
BBC News. (2021, January 3). Pakistan coal miners kidnapped and killed in IS attack. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-55522830.
Bjelke, J., & Lervik, B. E. (2020). Excommunication, Apostasy, and the Islamic State : The practice of Takfir in the Islamic State, an analysis of the propaganda magazine Dabiq. (Dissertation). Retrieved from https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-49121
CBC News. (2020, January 10). At least 13 killed in Pakistan mosque bombing. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/pakistan-quetta-mosque-bombing-1.5422033.
CNN. (2023, January 31). Death toll from blast in Pakistan mosque rises to at least 100 as country faces ‘national security crisis’. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/31/asia/pakistan-peshawar-mosque-blast-tuesday-intl-hnk/index.html.
CTV News. (2009, October 28). 100 dead after bomb rips through Pakistani market. Retrieved from https://www.ctvnews.ca/100-dead-after-bomb-rips-through-pakistani-market-1.448166.
Dawn. (2012, August 16). Timeline of Pakistan's defence sites attacked by militants. Retrieved from https://www.dawn.com/news/742602/timeline-of-pakistans-defence-sites-attacked-by-militants.
Dawn. (2017, February 13). Senior police officers among 13 killed as suicide bomber strikes Lahore. Retrieved from https://www.dawn.com/news/1314549.
Dawn. (2017, February 22). Pakistan Army launches 'Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad' across the country. Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/1316332.
Dawn. (2018, December 6). 32 killed, 31 injured in explosion in lower Orakzai district: health official. Retrieved from https://www.dawn.com/news/1447197.
Drennan, S. (2008). Constructing Takfir: From `Abdullah `Azzam to Djamel Zitouni. CTC Sentinel, 1 (7). https://ctc.westpoint.edu/constructing-takfir-from-abdullah-azzam-to-djamel-zitouni/.
ECOI. (2009). The 11 January 1998-Mominpura graveyard killing in Lahore and on any subsequent arrests. https://www.ecoi.net/de/dokument/1290841.html.
Fazli, R., Johnson, C., & Cook, P. Understanding and Countering Violent Extremism in Afghanistan. United State Institute of Peace. https://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/SR379-Understanding-and-Countering-Violent-Extremism-in-Afghanistan.pdf.
France 24. (2010, March 12). Twin attacks target military near Lahore market, killing scores. Retrieved from https://www.france24.com/en/20100312-twin-attacks-target-military-near-lahore-market-killing-scores.
Ginges, J., Magouirk, J. & Atran, S. (2008). Radical Madrasas in Southeast Asia, CTC Sentinel, 1 (3). https://ctc.westpoint.edu/radical-madrasas-in-southeast-asia/.
Hassan, M. H. (2017). The Danger of Takfir (Excommunication): Exposing IS’ Takfiri Ideology. Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses, 9(4), 3–12. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26351508.
IRB-CISR. (2005). Responses to Information Requests. Government of Canada. https://www.irb-cisr.gc.ca/en/country-information/rir/Pages/index.aspx?doc=450126.
Jamestown Foundation. (n.d.). Sipah-e-Sahaba: Fomenting sectarian violence in Pakistan. Retrieved from https://jamestown.org/program/sipah-e-sahaba-fomenting-sectarian-violence-in-pakistan-2/.
Kadivar, J. (2020). Exploring Takfir, Its Origins and Contemporary Use: The Case of Takfiri Approach in Daesh’s Media. Contemporary Review of the Middle East, 7(3), 259-285. https://doi.org/10.1177/2347798920921706.
Kalyvas, S. N. (2003). The Ontology of “Political Violence”: Action and Identity in Civil Wars. Perspectives on Politics, 1(3), 475–494. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3688707.
Military History Fandom. (n.d.). Terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2010. Retrieved from https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Terrorist_incidents_in_Pakistan_in_2010.
Morselli, Arturo. (2019). The Khawarij Paradigm Takfirism as Expression of Unconstrained Islamism. 10.13140/RG.2.2.34984.93448.
Mufti, M. (2012). Religion and militancy in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Retrieved from chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://csis-website-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/legacy_files/files/publication/120709_Mufti_ReligionMilitancy_Web.pdf.
National Assembly of Pakistan. (2012). The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Retrieved from https://na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/1333523681_951.pdf.
National Counterterrorism Center. (n.d.). Groups. Counter Terrorism Guide. Retrieved from https://www.dni.gov/nctc/groups.html.
Noor, S. (2012). Transformation of Sectarian Terrorism in Pakistan. Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses, 4(6), 10–14. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26351066.
PBS News. (2022, March 4). Suicide bombing attack kills at least 56 in Shiite mosque in Pakistan. PBS News. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/suicide-bombing-attack-kills-at-least-56-in-shiite-mosque-in-pakistan.
Peterson, A. (1989). Social Movement Theory [Review of Sociale bevaegelser og samfundsaendringer; The Making of the New Environmental Consciousness: A Comparative Study of the Environmental Movements in Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands; Nomads of the Present: Social Movements and Individual Needs in Contemporary Society, by Peter Gundelach, A. Jamison, R. Eyerman, J. Cramer, Jeppe Lassøe, A. Melucci, J. Keane, & P. Mier]. Acta Sociologica, 32(4), 419–426. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4200771.
Qadri, H. M.-D. (2018). Foreign, Political and Financial Influences on Religious Extremism: A Study of Madrassas in Punjab, Pakistan. Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses, 10(4), 5–11. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26402134.
Rieck, Andreas, 'The Zia ul-Haqq Era, 1977–1988', The Shias of Pakistan: An Assertive and Beleaguered Minority (2016; online edn, Oxford Academic), p. 197. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190240967.003.0006, accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Riedel, B. (2009, June 9). Pakistan is the new epicenter of terror. Brookings Institution. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/articles/pakistan-is-the-new-epicenter-of-terror/.
Robert M. Cassidy, War, Will, And Warlords: Counterinsurgency in Afghanistan and Pakistan, 2001-2011, Marine Corps University Press, Quantico, Virginia, 2012, p.4-7. https://www.marines.mil/Portals/1/Publications/War,%20Will,%20and%20Warlords.pdf
S.D. Silva (n.d.). The role of education in the prevention of violent extremism. Washington, DC: World Bank. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/448221510079762554/120997-WP-revised-PUBLIC-Role-of-Education-in-Prevention-of-Violence-Extremism-Final.pdf.
Shah, S. S. H. (2018). Religious Education and Extremism in Pakistan: From Deobandi Militancy to Rising Sufi Fanaticism. Journal of Education Culture and Society, 9(1), 11-26. https://jecs.pl/index.php/jecs/article/view/10.15503jecs20181.11.26
Shah, S. S. H. (2022). The impact of violent religious extremism on various cultural components of Pakistani society. The Journal of Education, Culture, and Society, 13(2), 107–118.
Shah, SSH, Mahmood, A. (2022). Post 2019 Spike in Terrorism: A Threat to Internal Security of Pakistan. Journal of Security & Strategic Analyses, 8(2):53-79. doi: 10.57169/jssa.008.02.0194.
South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP). (n.d.). Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ). https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/lej.htm.
South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP). (n.d.). Sipah-e-Mohammed Pakistan. https://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/smp.htm.
South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP). (n.d.). Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP). Retrieved from https://www.satp.org/terrorist-profile/pakistan/sipah-e-sahaba-pakistan-ssp.
South Asian Terrorism Portal (SATP). (n.d.). Fatalities in Pakistan. South Asian Terrorism Portal. Retrieved November 23, 2024, from https://www.satp.org/datasheet-terrorist-attack/fatalities/pakistan.
Stanford University. (n.d.). Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP). Mapping Militant Organizations. Retrieved from https://web.stanford.edu/group/mappingmilitants/cgi-bin/groups/view/147.
Suhaib, A. Q., & Adnan, M. (2020). Religious Extremism and Online Radicalization in Pakistan: How to Counter the Trend? Islamic Studies, 59(2), 239–254. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27088390.
The Express Tribune. (2011, February 21). Sectarian atrocity: 29 killed in Mastung, Quetta ambushes. Retrieved from https://tribune.com.pk/story/256419/gunmen-attack-bus-in-balochistan-20-killed.
The Guardian. (2024, November 23). Hundreds flee deadly sectarian violence in north-west Pakistan. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/23/hundreds-flee-deadly-sectarian-violence-in-north-west-pakistan.
The Wire. (2024, November 23). Deadly attack on Shia convoy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Wire. https://thewire.in/south-asia/pakistan-deadly-attack-on-shia-convoy-in-khyber-pakhtunkhwa.
U.S. Department of State. (2020). Country reports on terrorism 2019. Bureau of Counterterrorism. Retrieved from https://www.state.gov/reports/country-reports-on-terrorism-2019/
U.S. Department of State. (2023). Country reports on terrorism 2022. Bureau of Counterterrorism. Retrieved from https://www.state.gov/reports/country-reports-on-terrorism-2022/.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (n.d.). Preventing violent extremism by promoting inclusive development. Retrieved from www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/publications/Discussion%20Paper%20-%20Preventing%20Violent%20Extremism%20by%20Promoting%20Inclusive%20%20Development.pdf.
VCU. (2023, February 23). Social Media and Political Extremism. Online Wilder. https://onlinewilder.vcu.edu/blog/political-extremism/.
