Maulana Sami-ul-Haq killed by unknown assailants

Maulana Sami-ul-Haq. (AFP/File)
Updated 02 November 2018
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Maulana Sami-ul-Haq killed by unknown assailants

  • He ran a high-profile seminary where some of the top Afghan Taliban leaders were educated
  • He was frequently described as the “father of Taliban”

ISLAMABAD: Maulana Sami-ul-Haq, chief of his own faction of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S), was killed in a knife attack at his residence in Rawalpindi, said local media reported on Friday.
“The Maulana has been martyred,” his close aide and deputy chief of JUI-S, Yousaf Shah, confirmed while talking to Arab News. “All I can tell you at the moment is that he is no more with us.”
“Maulana Sami-ul-Haq has been assassinated,” Muhammad Hamza Shafqaat, Deputy Commissioner Islamabad, tweeted as well. “Small protests have erupted in Aabpara chowk. Everyone is advised to please stay at home for a while. We will take control of the situation in a while.”
Maulana Sami-ul-Haq ran a high-profile religious seminary, Darul Uloom Akora Khattak.

Notable deceased Afghan Taliban leaders, Mullah Muhammad Omar and Jalaluddin Haqqani, were among its alumni.
It was not just Haq’s influence with the Afghan Taliban but also his sway over Pakistan’s politics that led the Pakistani Taliban ask him to help negotiate a truce with the country’s government years back before Qatar allowed the Taliban to open an office in Doha.
A former senator, Haq spoke fluent Arabic, Urdu and Pashto.
His seminary was unofficially dubbed as “the university of jihad,” and he was frequently described as the “father of Taliban.” He was also widely viewed as a key to any peace deal to be negotiated between militant factions and the United States and Pakistan.


Pakistan rejects Amnesty claims of Israeli spyware use, calls reports ‘disinformation’

Updated 05 December 2025
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Pakistan rejects Amnesty claims of Israeli spyware use, calls reports ‘disinformation’

  • FO denies any link with Israel, says Pakistan has “absolutely no cooperation” on surveillance tools
  • Islamabad accuses India of delaying clearance for relief aircraft bound for flood-hit Sri Lanka

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday rejected an Amnesty International report alleging the use of Israeli-made invasive spyware in the country, calling the findings speculative and misleading.

Amnesty’s investigation, published Thursday under the title Intellexa Leaks, cited the case of a Pakistan-based human rights lawyer who reported receiving a suspicious WhatsApp link in 2025. According to Amnesty International’s Security Lab, the link bore signatures consistent with Predator, a spyware product developed by Israeli manufacturer c

Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi dismissed the suggestion that Islamabad had deployed the tool or maintained any technological cooperation with Israel.

“These are all media speculations. These are all rumor-mongering and disinformation. There is absolutely no cooperation between Pakistan and Israel on anything, let alone a spyware or these kinds of tools. So, I would reject it quite emphatically,” he said at a weekly briefing.

Andrabi also accused India of obstructing humanitarian operations, saying New Delhi delayed flight clearance for a Pakistani relief aircraft carrying aid to flood-affected Sri Lanka.

“The special aircraft carrying Pakistan’s relief goods had to wait for 48 hours, in fact more than 48 hours, around 60 hours, while the flight clearance from India was delayed,” he said.

He added that the eventual conditional flight window was too narrow to be workable.

“The partial flight clearance which eventually was given after 48 hours was operationally impractical, time-bound just for a few hours and hence not operable, severely hindering the urgent need for the relief mission for the brotherly people of Sri Lanka,” Andrabi stated.

“Humanitarian assistance is like justice, if it is delayed, it is denied.”

Responding to India’s claim that clearance was granted within four hours, he said Pakistan has documentary proof contradicting New Delhi’s version.

On a separate question about reported delays in the arrival of a Turkish delegation aimed at mediating between Islamabad and Kabul, Andrabi said Pakistan welcomed Ankara’s initiative but was unaware of the cause of postponement.

“We stand ready to receive the Turkish delegation. That delegation has not arrived as yet. And I’m not aware of any schedule. Pakistan is ready to hold negotiations, discussions,” he said, adding that the delay may be linked to coordination with the Afghan side.