The Inter-Cultural and Inter-Religious Forum (ICIRF) and the International Centre Against Terrorism (ICAT) organised a seminar in Geneva on Tuesday. The event witnessed participation from human rights defenders, social activists, and journalism personnel, addressing counter-terrorism, violent extremism, and human rights challenges for peace in Africa and Asia.
During the event, Mohammed Arif Aajakia, a London-based journalist, highlighted the tactics used by Pakistan to spread terrorism in Asian countries. Aajakia labelled Pakistan a ‘Nursery of Terrorism’ and stated, “Global Terrorism comes from Pakistan, under the direction of the Pakistani military.”
Referring to the origins of Al-Qaeda, Aajakia asserted that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was responsible for uniting radical Islamist organisations and individuals, leading to the terrorist organisation’s formation.
“After 9/11 where did we find Osama Bin Laden and Abu Faraj al-Libbi and Abu Zubaydah? All the notorious Al-Qaeda terrorists were found in Pakistan. But we made Pakistan our partner; on our part, it was wrong. To get rid of terrorism, get rid of Pakistan.”
The journalist also lamented the rampant human rights violations in his homeland, the Sindh province of Pakistan. “We in Sindh run expenses of the entire Pakistan, and yet we don’t have any civic facilities or basic human rights. More than 50 per cent of Pakistan’s national exchequer (revenue) comes from Sindh, while more than 50 per cent of Pakistan’s spending goes to Punjab, which contributes nothing to Pakistan. Then why is the international community accepting Pakistan’s branding of Pakhtuns as terrorists while Pakhtuns are the biggest victims of terrorism?”
He claimed that Pakistan’s military continuously pursues human rights defenders across borders, threatening them even after they seek asylum in other countries.
Referring to Ahmad Waqass Goraya’s case, he stated, “ISI has no limits. Two years back, the Dutch police contacted the British police and informed them about a Pakistani individual who had come from London to Rotterdam to kill a human rights defender because he spoke the truth about the Pakistani Army.”
According to his statement, the questioned individual was monitoring Goraya’s house but could not locate him because the police had moved him to an undisclosed location. After his arrest, personal chats revealed that the ISI had offered a substantial sum of money for killing Goraya.
