Hizb ut-Tahrir held rallies in Karachi and Islamabad for the release of Aafia Siddiqui. People attended these rallies in great numbers. In Karachi the rally started from N.E.D University and ended at Safari park, while in Islamabad this was organised at Zero Point. Participants of the rally were holding banners and play cards calling “O’ Pakistan Army! Establish Khilafah and Avenge Aafia”. In Karachi member of Hizb ut-Tahrir Engineer Saham and in Islamabad members of Hizb ut-Tahrir Adnan Qureshi and Zakir Azeem addressed the rally. In their addresses speakers said that the release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui can not be accomplished through mere requests to the USA or through the calls for justice in the international courts, instead, we will have to do what Muhammad Bin Qasim and Mutasim billah did i.e. waging Jihad with the help of the Khilafah’s army. They said that the present democratic rulers are as deaf, dump and bonded slaves as their predecessor dictators were. Expecting sincere efforts from the current democratic rulers and the friendly opposition is a waste of time as even today they are hounding our innocent brothers and sisters and handing them over to the American wolves. They said that we have to establish Khilafah and mobilise our armies. Then America will be forced to release Dr Aafia and many other brother and sisters lying in the dungeon of notorious Abu Guraib, Bagram and other CIA detention centres in exchange for their captured soldiers from this region. The speakers asked the Pakistan army; for how long will you see the disgrace of your sisters? They called upon the armed forces to provide Nusra (material support) to Hizb ut-Tahrir for the re-establishment of Khilafah so that organised jihad could be initiated to bring to a halt the atrocities against Muslims and secure the release of our brothers and sisters from the detention centres of Kuffar. They said that waging jihad by the Khilafah army is the only viable and quickest solution to bring back Aafia home. Participants of the rally were raising slogans “Unity of Ummah is Khilafah” and “Strength of Ummah is Khilafah”. At the end of the rally participants prayed for the establishment of Khilafah and the early release of Aafia Siddiqui. Later they dispersed peacefully.

Shahzad Shaikh

Official Deputy Spokesman of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Pakistan