ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Senate Standing Committee on Interior has this week approved a bill proposing a three-year jail term and fines for individuals involved in propagating Zionism or displaying the movement’s symbols.
Zionism emerged in the late 19th century as an ethnic and religious movement but later converted into a political movement for the establishment of the Jewish state of Israel through the colonization of land outside Europe, which is Palestine.
Pakistan does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
The anti-Zionism bill approved by the Senate committee on Thursday was introduced in the upper house of parliament by Senator Dr. Afnan Ullah Khan, a lawmaker from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party. He has tabled the bill as a private member, which means its approval does not signify government policy. This bill will become law only if it is passed by both houses of parliament, Senate and National Assembly, with majority vote.
“Whoever knowingly or intentionally is engaged in the preaching of Zionism to incite and provoke hatred in society shall be punished with three years imprisonment, or with forty thousand rupees ($145) fine or with both,” says the draft law.
“Whoever knowingly or intentionally display symbol of Zionism to spread hatred and cause a disturbance in public peace shall be punished with two years imprisonment, or with thirty thousand rupees ($108) fine, or with both.”
Being a Muslim state, the bill says, Pakistan “should never allow display of symbols depicting Zionism for spreading unrest in Pakistan.”
Pakistan parliamentary panel passes bill proposing three-year jail term for preaching Zionism
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Pakistan parliamentary panel passes bill proposing three-year jail term for preaching Zionism
- Draft law proposes imprisonment and fines for individuals involved in preaching and displaying symbols of Zionism
- Pakistan does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state
Six cops killed as IED explosion targets police vehicle in northwestern Pakistan
- Blast in northwestern Tank district kills inspector, additional sub-inspector, driver and three members of elite force personnel, says police official
- Attack takes place as Islamabad grapples with surge in militant attacks in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan
PESHAWAR: Six cops were killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast that targeted a police vehicle in Pakistan’s northwestern Tank district on Monday, a police official said as Islamabad struggles to contain surging militant attacks in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.
The IED explosion targeted an armored police vehicle on the Gomal-Jutta Road near the Kot Wali Canal area, Tank police spokesperson Younas Khan said. The blast killed an inspector, an additional sub-inspector, the driver of the vehicle and three members of the police’s elite force personnel.
“The armored police vehicle was completely damaged in the explosion,” Khan said.
He said senior police officials, including District Police Officer (DPO) Tank Shabbir Hussain Shah reached the site of the blast to collect evidence and carry out an operation in the nearby rugged terrain.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the incident, directing authorities to carry out an investigation into the incident.
“The terrorists responsible for this attack will be brought to their logical end at the earliest,” Sharif was quoted as saying by his office.
KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi praised police for their sacrifices against militancy, vowing to bring all those involved in the incident to justice.
“Anti-peace elements would not succeed in their nefarious designs by targeting the police force,” Afridi said as per a statement released from his office.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militant outfit has claimed responsibility for some of the deadliest attacks targeting law enforcement personnel in KP in the past. The TTP has frequently targeted convoys of security forces, police stations and check-posts besides kidnapping government officials in the region.
Islamabad has frequently accused Afghanistan of allowing the use of its soil to armed outfits such as the TTP. It has also alleged that India backs militant groupswho carry out attacks against Pakistan. Kabul and New Delhi have consistently denied this.
