Terror Strikes Karachi Again!!!!!!

As per it was expected in Karachi, the seventh largest city on earth has once again suffered a terrorist attack on the 10^th of Muharram, the day when a religious procession was being carried out for the heroes of kerbala, a suicide blast took place at M.A Jinnah road right in the heart of the procession. The death toll has gone in multiple figures where as the number of injuries has touched the 100 mark. The attack was being condemned by all the political parties and governing bodies residing in the nation. We also got few aggrieved messages from London by our beloved politicians for those who lost their lives in this attack.

Now the main reason why I am writing this article is just to highlight and link the event with the current situation of the region specially the tensions between India and Pakistan. Lets consider this option if some how as being said by our very up to dated interior ministry that local organizations are involved then just tell me what would they get out of it, destabilizing Karachi wont get them anything, now what we have to look at is who will be getting the major benefits by destabilizing Karachi.

I think that at least any local power wont get any pros. If said that it will act as a plus for ANP in the upcoming inter Karachi elections, then I think that person is not at all aware of the well established reputation of MQM with in the city.

Who else then? I believe that foreign hands are involved here and to a great extent those hands could be of our so called economically booming eastern neighbor. Why am I saying this? It is pretty clear at the moment that certain elements were trying to target the city and these are fake Indo-American Talibans who are working on a foreign agenda.

But another question arises here, what are they getting by doing this. This is what they are getting.

1. Destabilizing Karachi (The metropolitan city and a major business centre of Pakistan)

2. Getting Pakistan’s army on defensive approach.

3. Proving American propaganda right that the war on terrorism resides in Pakistan only.

Now according to the confirmed sources it is being said that TTP(Tehreek e Taliban,Pakistan) is being funded by certain foreign sources which include the all time famous CIA,RA&W and Mossad, which means if interior ministry comes up with the statement that TTP is involved in the Karachi happenings then it is quite clear that Indo-American involvement is surely there and this whole scenario is being created to get Pakistan and its law enforcement agencies in a bad spotlight again and to start pressurizing Pakistan to allow US intervention within the country and finally the dirtiest part is to further divide the major sects in Islam which in my perception has not been achieved by those who look Pakistan with a ghastly approach.

The main reason for writing this article is not to create suspicions, it is just to warn you all that now evil has its eyes on us and they wont let go if any opportunity comes their way there fore lets get united again and lets show the world what we are capable of.

PAKISTAN PAINDABAD.

Quran and Sunnah Propagation Mission

O you who believe! Be careful of your duty to Allah, and be with the truthful(Qur'an: Chapter 9, Verse 119)

Misconceptions Explained

Dr. Shahid Athar M.D.

World renowned Sunni Scholar

In the interest of Islamic unity, I must deal with the questions rather than shun them. Please note that Imam Jafar (peace be upon him), founder of the Shia school of law, was the teacher of Imam Abu-Hanifa (peace be upon him).

Misconception #1: Shias have a different Quran. They add another 10 chapters to the original Quran.

Response: Not true. I have checked many times Quran kept in Shia homes and mosques. I still find it the same as the original Quran. More recently, I took care of an Iranian lady patient hospitalized here. I saw a copy of the Quran by her side. I borrowed it from her and browsed through cover-to-cover. In Arabic it was the same as our Quran. Of course, since I did not know the Persian language, I can't say much about the translation. It is a sin to even say that the Quran can be changed or added to by Shia when God protects it.

Misconception #2: Some Shia considers Ali as God.

Response: Not true. It is disbelief to even think of such a thing. During the time of Ali, some pagan groups called Gholat did consider Ali as Lord. When he found out, they were burned to death.

Misconception #3: Shias have different declarations of faith and they add to the call to prescribed prayer.

Response: The declaration to become a Muslim, as administered to non-Muslims, is the same. Some Shia add to themselves, "Ali is a friend of God (PBUH) or Ali is a spiritual leader of God," after the call to prescribed prayer, but not as part of the call to prescribed prayer.

Misconception #4: Shias do not perform Sunnah prayers. Sunnah prayers are non-obligatory prayers performed by Prophet Muhammad.

Response: Shias do perform non-obligatory prayers, 36 cycles per day in total, but call it Nawafil and not Sunnah.

Misconception #5: Some Shia believes the Angel Gabriel made a mistake and prophet hood was meant for Ali and not Muhammad (PBUH).

Response: Not true. No Shia thinks of such false claims. "Only demented minds think of such questions."

Misconception #6: Shias slander and ridicule the first three caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman) and Prophet Muhammad's wife, Ayisha.

Response: Shia considers the first three caliphs as companions and administrators, but not spiritual leaders (Imams). Imam Jafar Sadiq, whose mother and grandmother came from the line of Abu Bakr, said of Abu Bakr, "He gave me birth twice." Ayisha is respected by Shias as the"Mother of Believers," as Ali respected her when he sent her back from Basra to Madinah after the Battle of the Camel. If some Shia do slander the three caliphs and Ayisha, they do it out of ignorance and should ask God's forgiveness. (As we have witnessed how Imam Khomeini The Shia bravely declared death of Salman Rushdie -The author of Satanic Verses who abused the wife of Prophet Ayesha and Shia Leader declared blasphemy, just for his Fatwa the whole western countries became against Iran. See how much price did Shia pay to defend Ayesha - while Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE etc. etc. as the Sunni government were silent they did not defend Ayesha. Now who loves Ayesha?)

Misconception # 7: Shias combine all five prayers into one prayer in the evening.

Response: Not true. In Shia mosques, whether in Iran or theUSA, all five daily prayers are performed. Shia do combine noon and afternoon and evening and night, but Shia scholars recommend performing them separately. Such combinations may not be ideal, but better than not praying at all. How can a Sunni who does not pray at all be better than a Shia who combines prayers? For more details please click to see...

Misconception # 8: Shias do not pay zakat (poor-due).

Response: Not true. They not only pay 2.5% left over from savings as zakat, but also an additional 20% as Khums or general charity. However, they prefer to pay directly to the needy rather than corrupt Sunni government.

Misconception #9: Shias practice temporary marriages (Mutah).

Response: Mutah (temporary marriages) was allowed during the time of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and he himself practiced it. Ibn Zubayr was born out of the temporary marriage. Later on Caliph Umar prohibited it due to social reasons as the Islamic world was rapidly expanding. Shias discourage Mutah but do not consider it prohibited. Some do abuse this. As a temporary privilege during travel, it is better than adultery. For more details please click to see...

Misconception #10: They consider Imams infallible and above the Prophets.

Response: Not true. All prophets are born Prophet but as mentioned in Quran about Abraham that after passing the test, a prophet becomes a leader (Imam). Muhammad (PBUH) is the Prophet (Nabi), Messenger (Rasul) and leader (Imam). Imams are carriers of the message of Islam. Shias consider Ali only as an Imam and not prophet.

With the little knowledge I have, I have tried to do my best as a Sunni in defending my Shia brothers in Islam with the hope and prayer to God Almighty that He will "instill love in the heart of the believers" and bring us closer to each other so that we jointly can fight our common enemy, Satan and his followers.

May God forgive my mistakes in this article and this book (Amin).

"Knowledge is better than wealth because it protects you while you have to guard wealth. It decreases if you keep on spending it but the more you make use of knowledge, the more it increases. What you get through wealth disappears as soon as wealth disappears but what you achieve through knowledge will remain even after you."

Dr. Shahid Athar M.D. is Clinical Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Indiana University School of Medicine Indianapolis, Indiana, and a writer on Islam.

One on One with Dr.Ashraf.

Assalamaulaikum everyone, This is what I have been working on for days. I caught up with an analyst I really look up to and his name is Dr. Mohammed Ashraf Khan. He is currently a GM(General Manager) at a Pharmaceutical firm. He has a good hold over the current affairs of Pakistan in particular and world on a whole. I just caught up with him one evening and queried about some of the issues related to Pakistan which still hold a blur picture in our minds.

Q.1. How long will Zardari stay as the President of Pakistan from now onwards?
Ans. Its anybody’s guess but its in the interests of the country that he should complete his tenure as the president of Pakistan because there is no good reason why he does not complete his term.

Q.2. Why do you think that Zardari should stay the President of the country considering the current scenario in which he is being regarded as a very corrupt personality?
Ans. This has been the history in this country, that few politicians are running the politics of revenge and playing the blame game, with this in mind it is pretty much understood that the majority of the blames involve political motives and if there is any genuine case then it would have rather been taken to court in the past. Even today bringing these issues up totally involves political motives.

Q.3. Then you mean to say that supreme court is acting as a puppet?
Ans. They are the most innocent ones at this stage and they are under pressure by certain forces which do not support democracy or democracy does not favor them. It will not take long that the intentions will be disclosed to Chief Justice Of Pakistan and he may have to select a different path to all these matters.

Q.4. What do you have to say about the swiss accounts issue?
Ans. Government of Pakistan has already spent a lot of time and money on this issue but yet a permeable solution has not been reached upon by any of the courts. There fore its better not to give a certain justification or decision to this case by yourself.

Q.5. What impact will the reopening of cases hold that were being reserved in NRO on current government?
Ans. One thing we have to understand now is that there is no way back and steps will be taken to close this chapter as soon as possible and for sure certain ministers will be punished just to show the public that justice is still available in a country where even the judicial institutions are corrupted.

Q.6. What security threats does Pakistan hold from the Afghan borders?
Ans. Actually we must understand that the pressure of the demands from the USA towards Pakistan has already been taken up by Pakistani policy makers. The only problem is the time schedule because the Americans want the Pakistani forces to leave all their jobs and to hunt after the terrorists on the Pak-Afghan Borders. But the problem is that Pak forces had given them good reasons that they are already engaged in fighting against this disease in their own areas like Waziristan etc and they are also bound to keep essential number of forces on Pak-India border to ensure country’s security so they cannot engage their forces and cannot open a new front against the terrorists on the Pak-Afghan border because Pakistan feels that there is no actual threat on Pak-Afghan Border and if it is there, there are thousands of NATO forces which can meet the challenge only if they are not involved themselves in destabilizing Pakistan from this front.


Q.7. How long will it take for Pakistan to get India onboard with its struggle against terrorism?
Ans. You know this is the tragedy in making in this part of the world that India has lost its credibility as a regional leader and they are acting more like a colony or agents of Americans, serving their interests and finally they will be the loosers, so its not at all important to look towards India as it has its own issues of separatists movements running through out the country and now its written on the wall clearly that “INDIANS WILL BE THE LOOSERS.”

Q.8. How do you see things shaping up for Pervez Musharraf?
Ans. It looks like in Pakistani politics that he may never come back as a person but he may support certain political forces so that he can catch significant amount of popularity in certain segments of Pakistan’s politics where he holds it.

Q.9. Has media in any sense been able to uphold its prestige in Pakistan?
Ans. Media in Pakistan is in a stage of struggle at the moment to prove that they are one of the stakeholders in the game of power and for this purpose they very frequently are playing foul and are not obeying the rules of the game just for the sake of one headline which can get them millions of pay cheques

Q.10. Last question of the day, how long will Pakistan suffer more?
Ans. To be very true this nation will have good days and bad days. The whole world knows that during last 60 years Pakistan has played far better then what they were expected to therefore in coming years Pakistan has a vital role to play in the region, in the world and of course in the Muslim politics.

I have tried my best to cover as many issues as I can just to satisfy a reader’s hunger. But incase if you have any queries or comments regarding this interview feel free to contact me on my facebook account(Muhammad Raza Ayub) or you can even comment on my blog.

Al-Qaeda may try to provoke India-Pakistan conflict

When Defense Secretary Robert Gates said last week al Qaeda and its allies might try to provoke a conflict between India and Pakistan, he articulated what many see as the biggest risk to U.S. plans for the region. A major attack on India by Islamist militants could lead to retaliation by a country still bruised by last year's assault on Mumbai, further destabilising nuclear-armed Pakistan. "The Pakistanis are really frustrated. They keep being told to 'do more'," said Kamran Bokhari at U.S. think-tank. Pakistan has been worried about the possibility of another militant attack on India but unsure how to prevent it. Pakistan is already fighting militants who attacked its military headquarters in October and last week killed at least 40 people in a nearby mosque used by the army. When they can't guarantee there will be no attacks in their own country, they can't guarantee India won't be attacked. India like always angry at Pakistan's refusal to act against the Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group blamed for killing 166 people in the Mumbai attacks, has rejected calls for talks and suggested it could even retaliate were there to be another major attack on Indian soil. As a result, tension is at its worst since 2002 when one million men were mobilised on the border after a December 2001 attack on the Indian parliament by Pakistan-based militants. "It's not as bad as 2002," said Praveen Swami, a defence expert at the newspaper The Hindu. "But it is the worst it has been since then." It is a situation which al Qaeda may try to exploit. The Pakistani army, taunted by the Taliban for fighting its own people and killing fellow Muslims, would have no choice but to respond against even limited strikes by India."There is no way they could not respond," said Bokhari, adding that the army would otherwise lose all credibility. Now the question that arises here is why there is deadlock in between Pakistan and India.I see the deadlock as a sign of a failure of U.S. diplomacy and evidence of deep divisions within the U.S. administration over how to handle Pakistan.Ever since India and Pakistan conducted nuclear tests in 1998, the United States has played unofficial peace broker.While it has quietly encouraged India and Pakistan to talk, it seems to have no clear idea how to end the stalemate."There is no real diplomacy going on," said Tarak Barkawi, a defence expert at Britain's Cambridge University. Without diplomacy, Washington had little to offer Pakistan except widening Predator drone attacks. At least in Afghanistan, U.S. troops could try to provide security and economic development. "All we can do in Pakistan is blow things up ... blow things up from afar," he said. "The whole presence of America in Pakistan is a destructive one."Nor does it have much to offer the Indian government, reluctant to start a conflict which might aggravate instability in its neighbour and determined to see off the threat it believes is posed by the Lashkar-e-Taiba. "I think they are very worried about Pakistan," said Swami. "But they don't know what to do about it."

Musharraf poised to return to Pakistan's politics..

With the constitutional restrictions on him ending today (November 28), former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf has started planning his return for another stint in his countrys politics. According to sources, Musharraf is in constant touch with his close aides to assess the political scenario of the country, and has asked them to pave the way for his return. Musharraf, who is currently in London on an unannounced exile, has been trying hard to bring his former supporters together. The former general has already held several round of meetings with several of his close associates in the PML-Q, including leaders of dissident group Hamid Nasir Chatta, Saleem Saifullah Khan and Humayun Akhtar. Sources said Musharraf has urged his close supporters to contact politicians for the formation of an unified Muslim League excluding the Nawaz Sharif led Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). According to the report, Musharraf is planning to floatt a new political party and has recently funnelled large sums of money into the coffers of former aides to promote his cause. These include former minister of information Sheikh Rasheed, who ...has been paid 1 million dollars, the same amount that went to a public relations team to boost Musharrafs image, the report said. The report also revealed that former general has received millions of dollars in donations from various corporate biggies and his close associates.

Lifestyle 09 changing lifestyles..................

This past week Dawn group arranged an exhibition at Expo center Karachi, which was being entitled as "Dawn Lifestyle". The exhibition is being brought up annually by the Dawn news and it holds a great reputation in Karachi and the crowd that was present there was surely evident enough to portray this fact.

A lot is happening in Pakistan these days, recently there was a fashion show organised by "veet skin care cream" in karachi, similar pattern was being followed in lahore. But lifestyle 09 was one of those major events that everyone waited for eagerly including me.

Fortunately enough I got time to attend the exhibition on the closing day(23rd nov 09). As per expected millions of people were there utilizing their sundays like me to the best of their extent. The event was purely organised for families due to certain security reasons which I think are quite obvious.

The arrangements that were made in putting up this mega event on are surely worth being applauded. The organizing team really give their hearts out to make this event a success. The main idea behind this exhibition was to get all the commodities at one place that are being used by us in our daily life or those articles which play a vital role in shaping one's lifestyle and keeping this in mind I must say that the event surely lived upto the expectations.

The worse part of the whole event was motor vehicles parking which was not being handled correctly by the management.

The event surely had alot to offer. Media,celebs,food,wardrobes,electronics and every article that one utilizes in shaping up his lifestyle was present there. The exhibition also brought a wholesome amount of public gathered at one place which was surely required under the prevailing conditions in our country. The closure of exhibition surely carried out lots of messages which included the fact that we are united, we are not terrorists and finally we are what we are that is we are Pakistanis.

The event surely ended on a happy note and I hope it has accomplished in transforming many lifestyles positively.....................

Something is cooking…..

One fine day, this picture leaked. It was one of those ordinary days when daily news drips of poison and pain. But then came a picture that brought with it… a dash of hope and some excitement. The picture was of Strings men Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia with Atif Aslam. It first surfaced on Strings’s official website (www.stringsonline.net). Soon it turned into one of those uncontrollable cyberspace stories that gets picked up almost instantly. And speculation brews with each passing day. The news cycle runs on its own. And that of course is because of the collective power of Atif Aslam and Strings.

Both Atif Aslam and Strings have confirmed the newsbyte. Something is definitely cooking in the studio.

“Bilal (Maqsood) suggested the idea of doing a song. We met up later and had four meetings, we came to some solid conclusions and it began from there,” says Atif .

“Something is definitely cooking. We are recording a song together and soon we’ll be hitting the studios. The structure of the song and the lyrics have been finalized. It’s quite uplifting. All of us are really excited about it. This song has nothing to do with United for Pop. It’s our own little effort towards something positive. So, I guess, you just have to wait for that…” trailed off Bilal Maqsood of Strings.

Recording together has brought the young Atif and the pros of pop Strings closer.

“Atif is a great guy. He’s down to earth and easy to work with. He is young but there is no doubt that he is hugely talented. He is successful yet grounded and a lot of fun,” says Faisal Kapadia about Atif.

And Atif is all praises for Strings just the same.

“They are what… 13 year older to me, maybe? I grew up with the sound of Strings. I’ve sung their songs at schools and college competitions. I am humbled that I’m working with them. It’s been an interesting process.”

The tune that is still going through the creative process of recording has input from both artists.

According to Atif, the lyrics are written by Bilal Maqsood whereas his interest was more towards song structure.

“We worked together on some melodies and structure because I am really interested in that part. The composition towards the end, its direction was mine whereas the rest is Bilal,” says Atif candidly.

Champagne supernova

Atif Aslam is a pop chameleon. He can roll with commercial Bollywood (remember those days of ‘Aadat’ remixes and ‘Lamhey’) and in the same vein, he can sing with Ustad Riyaz Ali Khan with vigour, respect and a doze of infectious youth as seen and heard on Coke Studio.

They call him the star of this decade. But Atif Aslam’s latest fixation is neither being a star nor looking back. Between Olper’s raging hit commercial and researching how an actual music industry should function and what it entails in the local scene, Atif is also excited about working with Strings. This isn’t the first collaboration for him. He sang with Hadiqa Kiyani the tune, ‘Meray Pass Pass’ for a television series. And it was absolutely brilliant. And after the experience of Coke Studio, this should be a walk in the park for the boy who has become such an aadat for us in the past few years.

On the other hand, if Atif is pop chameleon of this decade, Strings have been doing it for almost two decades with five solid records to their credit. With gems like ‘Sar Kiye’ ‘Aaj Din Bhar’, ‘Jab Say Mein Ne’, ‘Duur’, ‘Anjaane’, ‘Khirki’, ‘Na Jaane Kyun’ among countless others – this is one band that can’t be written off even if they take wee bit longer in releasing a full-fledged record. Their collaboration with Indian act Euphoria, ‘Jeet Lo Dil’, in 2004 was also a positive musical blast from the duo. This one is more personal because it brings together two generations that define contemporary music in Pakistan.

With their last record Koi Aanay Wala Hai, Strings roped in John Abraham for the video. But John Abraham tied up with Sony Music via his own company and was more than just a model in the video. It was the first music product John’s company had put out. That’s Strings for you. And their talent that hasn’t ceased yet.

Now imagine the power of these three men together. We do hope though that Strings and Atif release this tune as an official single, as is the norm with collaborations around the world. And that a video is in the works soon.