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Incidents of Anti-Shiism in April, 2016

Shia Rights Watch,شیعة رايتس ووتش

Month of April had at least 553 deaths; most of which took place in Shia communities of Iraq. Iraq has been on top of the violation chart against Shia Muslims for 2015 and evidence thus far predicts same for the year 2016. After Iraq, Syrian and Pakistani Shia lives were lost the most. Unfortunately, there are no clear records of the number of wounded individuals in some of the countries due to limitation of access. Shia Muslims also faced unlawful arrests and lifelong imprisonment sentences in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Azerbaijan. Other violations noted include anti-Shia protests in Indonesia, Fatwa (religious statement) against this population in Malaysia, the forced surrender of passports in India and the banning of Friday prayer in Nigeria.

Shia Rights Watch_Antishiism in April 2016

Overview

This report will analyze the data compiled on Shia deaths, injuries, and arrests that occurred between April 1st and April 30th, 2016. The data for this report was gathered from a variety of different sources. The most well-known incidents of anti-Shiism were retrieved and reported to Shia Rights Watch by eyewitnesses. Each incident is thoroughly evaluated for both authenticity and relevance. For an incident to be included in this report it has to show clear intent to target Shia Muslims on the basis of religious beliefs. The subsequent sections will present and analyze the data gathered by Shia Rights Watch for April.

Where have Shia Muslims been targeted?

In April, Shia Muslims were victims in many countries however this report details violations in: Iraq, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Nigeria, Bahrain, India, Indonesia, Azerbaijan and Malaysia. There were a total of 553 Shia deaths, dozens of injuries, four life sentences and thirteen people imprisoned this month.

Iraq

Nearly fifty-nine anti-Shia attacks took place in Shia populated cities and neighborhoods of Iraq killing 534 people in the month of April. Baghdad in particular has been the most dangerous place for Shia Muslims as it continues to have the most deaths and injuries of every Iraqi city. Killings and attacks were in the form of gunfire, bombs, and suicide explosions. After Baghdad, Iraqi Shia in Madain, Basra, Nasiriya, Mahmudiya, Baquba, Samarra, Najaf and Karbala were attacked the most.

The presence of ISIS and unstable political system adds to the vulnerability of Shia Muslims living in Iraq.

Shia Rights Watch_Wounded in April 2016

Nigeria

Nigerian security agents prevent Shia Muslims from attending Friday prayers in Katsina and Kebbi. This rule was started Friday April 1, 2016 which prohibits Shia Muslims from  holding Friday prayer in these towns.

Update on December 2015 mass Shia killing:

Approximately four months passed since the killing of more than 1000 of Nigerian Shia in December 2015 by state army. According to activists approximately 730 went missing since the incident. Based on our findings, during the early attack to the Shia Mosque in December and recently confirmed by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, the army brutally killed more than 400 Shia men, women, and children and buried bodies in a mass grave to prevent further investigation by families. More mass graves are recovered, worrying families who are still awaiting for their missing family member to come back.

Nigerian army has been trying to cover up the evidences. Local Shia stressed that a contingent of soldiers had been deployed to keep guard at the site of the mass grave in an effort to prevent the uncovering of the hundreds of bodies buried there.

After the attack the military sealed off the areas around Zakzaky’s compound, the Hussainiyya and other locations. They took bodies away, removed rubble, washed bloodstains and removed bullets and spent cartridge from the streets.

Witnesses saw piles of bodies outside the morgue of Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital in Zaria. Latter 191 corpses were transferred from the Nigerian Army Depot in Zaria to a burial site in the Mando area of Kaduna, a further 156 corpses were taken from the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital in Zaria to the same burial site.

According to local activists, the burial in Kaduna was based on a court order by the state government. The depressing fact that the army killed hundreds of unarmed civilians in a forty-eight hour time-frame clearly states that this action was based on some official order resulting in a substantial loss of life at the hands of the military.

Shia Rights Watch_killed in April 2016

Bahrain

Shia Muslims continue to face violations by authorities in Bahrain.

On April 30th, Bahraini authorities arrested 35 Shia Bahraini from Karbabad. There yet to be any explanations for the arrest.

Also in this month, Ali Abdulghani, a young Bahraini Shia man, died on April 4, 2016 due to his injuries he received on March 26th, 2016 after being run over by the police in the city of Manama during an anti-government protest On March 31st, the police supposedly stormed his aunt’s house to arrest him, but he fled.

The Bahraini regime also detained Shia cleric Mohammed al-Mansi, who works as a leader of the Islamic Clerics council. The regime used the excuse that he held prayers without the permission of the Al Khalifa regime in order to arrest him. The cleric has been known for speaking out against the destruction of forty-three Shia mosques by the Manama regime. Before his sentencing he was subjected to a 48 hour interrogation.

Moreover, Bahraini court has sentenced eight people to life in jail after convicting them of “terrorism”. Another five people were jailed on 27th of April with similar accusations. It is important to note that Bahrain charges pro-democracy advocates as terrorists and most of them are Shia.

 

Indonesia

A group of Wahhabis protested in front of a Shia private property as they were holding a ritual in Bangil. The protestors threatened the Shia with racial slurs and demanded cancelation of the religious ritual taking place. According to an activist volunteer, police had to protect the participants and prevent the crowd from entering the private property.

‘Bangil’ is the name of the region and city in East Java, Indonesia which consists of eleven rural district and four villages. Wahhabis are influential in East Java and since the year 2000 they have been responsible for many murders, burned homes, and displaced Shiite Muslims in Sampang.

 

India

On April 1, 2016, Indian authorities in the district of Lucknow told Shia cleric, Kalbe Jawad,   he must hand in his passport within the following ten days. In a statement on the issue by Jawad, he says, “A revenge is being taken against me as I have been raising my voice against anomalies committed by the district administration in the Hussainabad Trust”.

Indian Shia have faced violations in the past as the government used tear gas to interrupt their rituals in 2015 and asked them to remove their banners from advertisement boards on streets.

Pakistan

Three Shia Muslims were shot by terrorists of Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat (ASWJ) near Shafiq Mor area of Karachi on Friday April 8th, 2016. The three victims whose names were Hashim (40 years old), Ali Sajjad (27 years old, and Shamim Rizvi (30 years old), were returning from Friday prayers at Shah Najaf Imambargah in Bafarzone when suspects intercepted them.

Hashim and Ali died instantly and Shamim joined them later on when he died from his injuries in a nearby hospital. It is being speculated that this attack was in response to members of ISIS recently being killed in combat, suggesting these two terrorist groups have close ties.

Also, on April 20th, 2016 a religious scholar of the Shia School of Thought named Allama Imdad Hussan Jafri was slaughtered in Hyderabad, Pakistan. Unknown armed terrorists illegally entered the scholar’s home and slaughtered him to death.

Pakistani Shia have lost valuable members of their community due to their Shia faith and the government has yet to take any action to protect them.

 

Saudi Arabia

Ali al-Nimr, Dawoud al-Marhoun and Abdullah al-Zaher wait to be executed after being given the death sentence. The victims were accused of participating in pro-democracy protests back in 2011 and 2012. Accourding to activists, the inmates were not appointed lawyers and forced to confess under torture where they had been forced to sign blank papers on which their “crimes” were later written down.

Ali and Dawoud were 17 and Abdullah was 15 at the time of their arrest. The three men are currently being held in Dammam Mabahith Prison.

Also, on Monday April 23rd, Saudi Arabia approved of the death sentence for Shia activist Yusof al-Mosheykhas, in the city of Awwamiyah in the eastern region of Qatif

 

Azerbaijan

In Lankaran, Azerbaijan, large numbers of Shia leaders were arrested unfairly. Police raided the homes of clerics and activists, including Karbalayi Qismat, Syed Nazem and Seyed Waqar, taking them into custody, according to reports by the Caucasus Cultural Center.  Shia Muslims make up 85% of the country, yet are still extremely discriminated against.

 

Malaysia

Recently, Abdullah Din, a well-known Malaysian scholar, suggested forbidding marriage between Shia and non-Shia Malaysians despite the fact that these populations intermarried throughout their history and coexisted in harmony. This anti-Shia scholar also stated “I hope the religious departments and mufti from all states will issue a clear edict on whether it is allowed for Muslims to consume food served by Shiites [Shia], including whether animals slaughtered by Shiites are halal and so on.”

Anti- Shia clerics and scholars have freedom to spread hateful messages against Shia Muslims in Malaysia, yet they express acceptance toward other minority groups. Malaysian Shia have been banned from publishing their books and keeping any Shia publications in public places.

Syria

On Monday April 25th, 2016 many people were killed via car bomb near the revered Shia shrine of Sayyida Zeinab in the town of Al-Diyabiyah, which is a common place for Shia to visit on religious pilgrimages. As many as fifteen people were killed and eighty were transported to a nearby hospital.

Syrian Shia have been slaughtered, killed and violated against by numerous anti-Shia groups in Syria including ISIS. Unfortunately many of the violations are not reported due to limited coverage by media and access by human rights NGOs.

 

Conclusion

Anti-Shiism is spreading and on the rise in many countries. It is up to the international community whether organizations or just regular people to oust the prejudice and misinformation when the governments of these countries cannot bring themselves to do so. Shia Rights Watch condemns the acts committed against Shia Muslims around the world, and urges the authorities to take action and protect this minority in their homelands.

Shia Rights Watch believes Anti-Shiism is a growing trend that will continue to gain notoriety until the international community addresses the issue.

Shia News Wire #64

April 22nd to 29th, 2016

Syria

Monday 4/25/16 many people were killed via car bomb near the revered Shia shrine of Sayyida Zeinab in the town of Al-Diyabiyah, which is a common place for Shia to visit on religious pilgrimages. According to the Syrian observatory for human rights the death toll is at 15 and 80 people were injured as a result of the bombing.

Iraq

Monday April 25th, a car bomb went off killing at least 11 and injuring 39 in a Shia district of Baghdad. No one immediately claimed the attacks. The blast also set fire to 5 vehicles who were in the vicinity. The attack occurred that evening during rush hour.

April 22nd, 2016 An ISIS claimed suicide bomber killed six Shia Muslims in Baghdad, Iraq at a mosque. Six people killed and at least 33 people injured. Journalists saw three dead bodies being taken away from the massacre in coffins.

A mass grave was discovered in Baghdad. 30 bodies were fund. Officials are still investigation to identify the bodies.

Saudi Arabia

Monday April 23rd, Saudi Arabia approved of the death sentence for Shia activist Yusof al-Mosheykhas, in the city of Awwamiyah in the eastern region of Qatif. In January 2014 after attending a few anti-government protests he was arrested and charged for an act of terrorism.

On Sunday April 22nd, the Saudi government sentenced Issa al-Hamid, an activist, to 9 years in jail for protesting for his human rights. He is also banned from foreign travel through this period. Al-Hamid is a senior member of the Saudi Association for Civil and Political Rights (HASEM). The court found him guilty of instigating people to violate public order, insulting the judiciary, and defaming a number of senior religious figures. Felice Gaer, A UN Torture Committee Member said that there have been many cases of suspects being tortured by the Saudi regime into making confessions (most of which are untrue).

It is notable that Saudi government charges all anti-governments with terror crime.

Bahrain

On April 27, 2016 Bahrain sentenced eight Shia to a lifetime jail sentence. On Tuesday, the same court jailed five others for “terrorist aims”, the prosecution said.

It is notable that Bahraini government, like Saudi, charges all anti-governments with terror crime.

Pakistan

A religious scholar of Shia school of thought named Allama Imdad Hussan Jafri was slaughtered, on Wednesday in Hyderabad, Pakistan. Unknown armed terrorists illegally entered the scholar’s home and slaughtered him to death.

Malaysian Shia under Systematic Attack

Anti-shiism-in-Malaysia

Malaysian Shia face systematic human rights violations. The government has banned all Shia related publications and has raided Shia commemorations in order to prevent this population from practicing their faith.

Recently, Abdullah Din, a well-known Malaysian scholar, suggested forbidding marriage between Shia and non-Shia Malaysians despite the fact that these populations intermarried throughout their history and coexisted in harmony.

This anti-Shia scholar also stated “I hope the religious departments and mufti from all states will issue a clear edict on whether it is allowed for Muslims to consume food served by Shiites [Shia], including whether animals slaughtered by Shiites are halal and so on.”

Earlier Abdullah Din, a member of the Kedah anti-Shia task force committee, stated that Shia are infidels and deviants in the eyes of Islam.

Moreover, to increase pressure on Malaysian Shia, the country organized seminars under the supervision of University Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) where scholars from the university worked spreading anti-Shia messages. Fadlan Othman, a member of the Quran and al-Sunnah Studies Department, who is part of the organizing committee, also stated “the seminar today upholds the rights of Muslims. No problem with human rights, “we have our human rights that must be defended from the onslaught [assault] of the Shiah” [Shia].

Increasing Shia rights violations in Malaysia has been a concern for Shia Rights Watch. Malaysian Shia must have the right to practice their faith, as Christians, Jews, and other non-Muslims do, says director of SRW, Mustafa Akhwand.

The future for Shia Muslims in Malaysia is worrisome and therefore SRW urges the Malaysian government to protect its Shia citizens and prevent discriminations toward them by anti-Shia clerics and community members.

Persecution of Shia Muslims In Bahrain

Shia Rights Watch’s executive director Mustafa Akhwand is invited to the conference titled “Persecution of Shia in Bahrain,” for a two day summit in Brussels. This summit is organized by SALAM for human rights and justice and No Peace without Justice(NPWJ), to promote and protect human rights and democracy in the Middle East and in Bahrain in particular.
There are many objectives in this summit, a closer look at the history of Shia in Bahrain, political challenges and freedom of religion. Despite all the effort of stopping violence against Shia in Bahrain, government is not willing to respect their citizens and give them dignity they are entitled to according to the International Laws. Shia Rights Watch’s director Mustafa Akhwand will analyze the conflict in Bahrain as “Structural Violence” that is causing the history of Bahrain to collapse in near future, This Summit will shed light on facts regarding “Bahrain government aiming to destroy the Shia history, ruining the future generation of Shia.” said Mr. Akhwand, and also added his optimism for seeing results and change people and NGOs collectively work together and aim for commonalities as opposed to differences in solving problems.

Shia News Wire #63

April 15th to 22nd, 2016

Azerbaijan

In Lankaran, Azerbaijan, many Shia figureheads were arrested. Police raided the homes of clerics and activists, including Karbalayi Qismat, Syed Nazem and Seyed Waqar, taking them into custody, according to reports by the Caucasus cultural center.  Shia Muslims make up 85% of the country, yet are still extremely discriminated against. During the raid, the officers have closed the entrances into Lankaran.

Bahrain

The Bahraini regime detained Shia cleric Mohammed al-Mansi, who works as a leader of the Islamic Clerics council. The regime used the excuse that he held prayers without the permission of the Al Khalifa regime in order to arrest him. The cleric has been known for speaking out against the destruction of 43 Shia mosques by the Manama regime. Before his sentencing he was subjected to a 48 hour interrogation.

Saudi Arabia

Three men currently wait to be executed after being given the death sentence for crimes they had allegedly committed during their youth. Their confessions had been given under torture where they had been forced to sign blank papers on which their “crimes” were later written down. An official statement by the government made it sound like either one or potentially all of them would be executed soon. The men’s names are Ali al-Nimr, Dawoud al-Marhoun and Abdullah al-Zaher. Unlawful practices against them surrounding their incarceration include them not being appointed lawyers during any of the interrogations/confessions/ period following. They were put under arrest following participation in Shia protests back in 2011 and 2012. Al-Nimr was tried and sentenced invidually May 2014, while the other two were arrested the following October as part of a group. Al-Nimr and Al-Marhoun were both 17 at the time, while Al-Zaher was only 15 years old. The three men are currently being held in Dammam Mabahith Prison.

Iraq

According to the Iraq body count there were approximately 63 deaths this week caused by a combination of IEDs, gunfire, and executions. These murders occurred in many cities across the nation including but not limited to Baghdad, Karbala, Mosul, Madain, etc.

 

Letter to President Obama to advocate for human rights in his meeting with leaders of Gulf Cooperation Council in Saudi Arabia

Letter to President Obama to advocate for human rights in his meeting with leaders of Gulf Cooperation Council in Saudi Arabia

Mr. Barack Obama
President of the United States of America
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear President Obama;

On behalf of the Shia Rights Watch (SRW), we respectfully urge you to use your upcoming meeting with the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh on April 21, 2016 to emphasize on the importance of improvement on human rights in mentioned countries.

As you are aware, Gulf leaders use the national security as a mean to oppress pro-democracy activists, minorities, journalist and human rights defenders. Saudi Arabia’s Terrorism Law Template, for example, defines terrorist as a person who “insults the reputation, of the state or its position”. Based on this definition anyone who critiques the corruption or violation carried by the government is punished as terrorist. As the result human rights defenders face judicial harassment and other reprisals for their domestic human rights advocacy, engagement with UN human rights mechanisms, or engagement with the international human rights community. Also, similar law enabled all six Golf states to harass, detain, put on trial, and imprison political activists and human rights defenders.

Beside human rights defenders, minority groups, such as Shia Muslims, face serious threat by their governments in Gulf area. Destruction of historical Shia sites and imprisonment of Shia Muslims in Saudi Arabia, deportation of this minority from Kuwait and United Arab Emirates, and ongoing Shia oppression including minor imprisonment in Bahrain, targeted killings in Syria and Yemen are only some examples of the human rights violations in GCC countries.

Compared to other GCC counties Saudi Arabia as the most human rights violations. Execution of the most influential Shia cleric, Sheikh Nimr al-Nime, sentencing his nephew, Ali Nimr, beheading of at least 151 people in 2015 leaving their children and women unprotected, ongoing support of terrorists, extreme ban on Shia religious practices and,  are issues that we urge you to  keep in mind when visiting this country.
We urge you to advocate for the freedom of the prisoners who are detained because of expressing their religion, rights or opinion.

As American citizens and human rights defenders, we hope to see more freedom of religion and expression in Gulf countries after your meeting on April 21, 2016.

You putting human rights at the heart of your agenda at your meeting with the leaders of the GCC will send powerful message to all leaders and presents our American values.

Sincerely
Mustafa Akhwand
Director of Shia Rights Watch

Shia News Wire #62

April 8th to 15th, 2016

Pakistan

Three Shia Muslims were shot by terrorists of Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat (ASWJ) near Shafiq Mor area of Karachi on Friday April 8th, 2016. The three victims whose names were Hashim (40 years old) , Ali Sajjad (27 years old) and Shamim Rizvi (30 years old), were traveling in a car when suspects intercepted them at Namak Bank in the jurisdiction of Taimooria police station; they were then shot through their car. Hashim and Ali died instantly and Shamim joined them later on when he died from his injuries in a nearby hospital. It is being speculated that this attack was in response for the members of ISIS recently killed in combat, suggesting these two terrorist groups have close ties. Of the three killed two were father and son (Ali and Shamim) and one was a young Shia who must’ve been acquainted with the family. The attack occurred on their way home from offering Friday prayers at Shah Najaf Imambargah in Bafarzone. Their funerals were held in Incholi, Pakistan (the father and son on Friday and Hashim on Saturday, which is when he was declared dead).

Iraq

According to Iraq Body Count, 63 Shia Muslims were killed In Iraq. Most bombings took place either in Shia populated markets or Shia neighborhoods.

Nigeria

This week marked 100 days since the killing of hundreds of Nigerian Shia. Based on our findings, during the early attack to the Shia Mosque in December and recently confirmed by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, the army brutally killed more than 400 Shia men, women, and children and buried bodies in a mass grave to prevent further investigation by families. According to local activists, the burial in Kaduna was based on a court order by the state government. The depressing fact that the army killed unarmed civilians in a 48 hours frame clearly states this action was based on some official order resulting in a substantial loss of life at the hands of the military.

SRW addressed Nigerian embassy in Washington DC through official NGO letter requesting update on the case and demand release of Sheikh Zakzaky.  In our letter we stated « Shia communities face much discrimination around the world, and such violence carried by their government threatens their healthy existence. SRW reemphasizes the need of investigation by non-biased experts in human rights and country legislation. Nigerian Shia have lost their trust in their government and it is to the benefit of all parties to participate in investigation and bring justice and trust back to the community’.

100 Days Have Passed, yet the Nigerian Army is Not Questioned

The Nigerian army’s brutal attack and killing of hundreds of Shia Muslims on December 2015 concerns Shia Rights Watch deeply. Such action requires in-depth investigation. Based on our findings, during the early attack to the Shia Mosque in December and recently confirmed by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, the army brutally killed more than 400 Shia men, women, and children and buried bodies in a mass grave to prevent further investigation by families, despite the families visits to police stations and asking for answers regarding the disappearance of their family members. According to local activists, the burial in Kaduna was based on a court order by the state government. The depressing fact that the army killed unarmed civilians in a 48 hours frame clearly states this action was based on some official order resulting in a substantial loss of life at the hands of the military.

The arrest of Sheikh Zakzaky; the community leader and a father whose children were killed in previous attacks to the community, is another on-going violation carried by the Nigerian government.

Shia communities face much discrimination around the world, and such violence carried by their government threatens their healthy existence. SRW reemphasizes the need of investigation by non-biased experts in human rights and country legislation. Nigerian Shia have lost their trust in their government and it is to the benefit of all parties to participate in investigation and bring justice and trust back to the community.

SRW urges immediate action based on humanity and dignity for all.

Shia News Wire #61

April 1st to 7th, 2016

Iraq

April 4th 2016, approximately 10 suicide bombers killed 25 Iraqis. The biggest attack of this incident happened when a man detonated himself at a restaurant killing 14 people. The bombings occurred in MAKHMUR, Iraq, with other bombings occurring in, Baghdad, Mashada, and Basra.

In other incidents,  several anti-Shia attacks occurred within the country resulting in 23 deaths and two dozen injuries. This includes 5 lives lost and 9 injured following a bombing at a psychiatric hospital in Sadr City, a shooting  attack on a Shia cleric by unidentified men in which he was killed instantly, shells mired by militants in west Baghdad left 2 killed and 8 injured, and a  car bomb in Basra which killed 5 people.

According to sources 93 Iraqi citizens were killed in total this week and the main cities in which attacks occurred are Baghdad, Madain, Basra, Mahmudiya, and Naserieh. Dozens of Iraqi Shia were injured this week as a result of anti-Shiism.

Nigeria

Nigerian security agents prevent Shia Muslims from attending Friday prayers in Katsina and Kebbi. This rule was started Friday April 1, 2016 which does not allow members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, to pray Fridays in these towns.  The preachers of the IMN cancelled services as the result to prevent violence and tension.

Bahrain

Ali Abdulghani, A young Bahraini Shia man, was run over by police-car in the city of Manama during an anti-government protest on March 26th. On March 31st, the police supposedly stormed his aunt’s house to arrest him, but he fled.  He died from his injuries one week later on April 4, 2016.

Indonesia

A group of Wahhabi’s started a protest amidst a group of Shia Muslims who were having a celebration in honor of Sayyida Fatima’s Birthday. The Wahhabis shouted anti-Shia slurs and demanded the ceremony be closed. According to sources, the group was convinced this celebration would lead to increased Shiism is Indonesia, so they thought it was necessary to intervene. The protest took place in the town of “Bangil.”

India

On April 1, 2016, Indian authorities in the district of Lucknow have told Shia cleric, Kalbe Jawad,   he must hand in his passport within the following ten days. According to police, there are many charges against him, but when he asked whether other people with such charges had their passports taken away, he was not given an answer, which leads many to believe that this was an act of anti-Shiism as opposed to a lawful crime and punishment scenario. In a statement on the issue by Jawad, he says, “A revenge is being taken against me as I have been raising my voice against anomalies committed by the district administration in the Hussainabad Trust”. Moreover, the cases in which the police are charging him for were resolved back in 2013 as the cleric states: “Regional Passport office (RPO) in connivance with district administration is trying to harass me. The cases against me mentioned in the letter sent by RPO were withdrawn in 2013 and the then DM Anurag Yadav’s letter on Apr 23, 2013 mentioned that.” Three years later he should not still be punished for crimes withdrawn back then, making this seem more like an excuse to condemn him and his religious beliefs.

Incidents of Anti-Shiism in March, 2016

 

Overview:

This report will analyze the data compiled on Shia deaths, injuries, and arrests that occurred between March 1st and March 31st, 2016. This month there were 466 deaths within the Shia community. Also 15 cases of arrest were reported.  Anti-Shia violations were reported in seven countries during March 2016.

As it was expected Iraq has the highest number of civilian killing due to bombing and explosions. Highest number of arrest took place in Bahrain and most deportations are from Kuwait.

Beside killing, arrest and deportation, attack to religious gathering, and ban of Shia call to prayer was reported.

In March, Shia Muslims were targeted in ten countries; Bahrain, Iraq, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Kuwait, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia.

The data for this report was gathered from a variety of different sources. The most well-known incidents of anti-Shiism were retrieved from stories that are reported to Shia Rights Watch by eyewitnesses. Each incident is thoroughly evaluated for both authenticity and relevance. For an incident to be included in this report it has to show clear intent to target Shia Muslims on the basis of religious beliefs. The subsequent sections will present and analyze the data gathered by Shia Rights Watch for March.

Where have Shia Muslims been targeted? 

Shia Rights Watch_March 2016_T

Bahrain

Pressure on pro-democracy advocates continues Bahraini authorities arrest and detain peaceful protestors on daily bases.  In month of March daughter of political activist, Zainab al-Khawaja, and her one year old baby were detained by the Bahraini government.

In addition, Bahraini autoritaires  arrested ten people during a protest in Manama. The arrested individuals were found guilty of being involved in « terrorist plots », and resisting police.  Four of them were given lifetime sentences while the rest of them were given between 3 and 15 years.

Déportions also continues as the government deported several Lebanese on the accusations of them having ties to militant groups. According to reports, so far 7 Lebanese families were deported on grounds of this. Dr. Masood Jahroomi was forced deportation by the government after having his citizenship taken away. He was arrested in 2011 and was detained five months before being given a sentence. Bahrain has been on human rights activits’s radar since the Arab Spring and violations has not decreased nor prevented since.

 Bangladesh

Tuesday March 15, 2016 Top Shia preacher, Abdur Razzak, aged 48, was hacked to death on his way home from his shop in Kaliganj town in Jhenaidah district. Although the attack was later claimed by ISIS. police say it wasn’t ISIS. He was declared dead later that night at Kaliganj Upazila Health Complex.

According to the head of the Shia School in the district, Abdur Razzak has been a member of the Shia community at least 20 years. Right before the murder, he received threatening calls from drug dealers who believed him to have helped arrest them months previously.

Bangladesh is not known to have large Shia population. Any violation  must be carefully examined in order to prevent future crises.

Iraq

Iraq continues to top the list for violence against Shia Muslims, and this could be a result of the majority Shia population and present of ISIS in this country.
As many as 377 civilians have been reported killed in Iraq in the month of March. Improvised explosive device (IED), gun fires, execution by ISIS, road bombs, and suicide bombers are responsible for the death toll. Violators use busy markets, funerals and religious gatherings to target civilians.

Iraq had the highest death toll in 2015 and 2016 is expected to be the same.

In 2015 more than 5000 people were killed and another 5000 injured in Iraq and the trend continues this year. The government and anti-ISIS coalitions have failed to protect civilians so far.

Shia Rights Watch_March 2016_G

Pakistan

This month Pakistan had three murders, one arrest, and one injury according to our reports. The violation in Pakistan mainly occurred by gunfire against Shia activists.  In the most devastating incident, Professor Abid Raza, school principal of ICMS school system was shot by four terrorists of Ahle-E-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat. He was attacked on his motorcycle by another cyclist. Video of the attack can be accessed by contacting SRW, but won’t be published due to graphic scenes. Another two Shia were killed in Dera Ismail Khan and one was attacked and killed in Charsadah.

Rizwan Haider was arrested under blasphemy laws and sentenced to 13 years in prison.

Shia rights violations have long history in Pakistan. Shia minority have always been attacked and killed on daily bases and the government has not taken steps to prevent the killings.

Saudi Arabia

This month Saudi Arabia had seven deaths, two arrests, and a case of limited religious prayer

Makki Ali was arrested at the checkpoints and then detained in Awwamiyya district police station without any explanation.  Securities denied his detention at first, but released his dead body after four weeks of his death. SRW’s investigation on the body revealed that Makki was subjected to severe tortured before he was killed.

The gouvernement also arrested a Shia cleric , Hussein al-Radhi, shortly after he led prayers in the al-Ahsa oasis region of Eastern Province.  The detention came after the senior cleric wrote an article in which he criticized the authorities for jailing and executing critics and dissidents, including Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr who was beheaded in January. Saleh Ghanim is another detainee who was arrested becouse he expressed the need to protect SHia mosques in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is known for its support to ISIS and anti-Shia ideologies.

Shia Rights Watch_March 2016_G1

 

Kuwait

This month, the Kuwait government deported 74 Shia Muslims. All people deported are falsely accused of ties to Hezbollah. Most of those deported had Iraqi and Lebanese nationalities. This country has deported number of Shia Muslims in the past with the same accusation. Such accusations were never investigated and proved.

Nigeria

This month the Nigerian government was guilty of blocking a religious procession in honor of Muhammad’s daughter. The violation occurred Wednesday March 30, 2016. The procession, named the Sayyada Zahara Maulud procession, is an annual event by the movement to commemorate the birth of the prophet’s daughter, Fatima.  According to the movement’s leader, ten armed security guards rolled up to the protest and started taking away their flags, signs, etc., making people very fearful.  The governor stated that he did not mean to deny their religious freedom, but they could not tolerate religious events at public property. The procession began at 8am at the central mosque.

 Conclusion

Causality cases against Shia Muslims were increased during March compared to February. Bahrain, Pakistan, Iraq and Saudi Arabia that are covered in this report, have known history of violations against Shia. Thousands of Shia Muslims have lost their lives in mentioned countries combined and hundreds, including minors, are unlawfully detained.

 

UN Complaint