Sunday, July 18, 2021
Brit-Pakistani charged with conspiracy to kill Pak blogger (Ahmad Waqass Goraya), to be produced in UK court Monday
The London-based Khan was charged with the crime by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), a United Kingdom-based independent investigation agency, which works in collaboration with the police and courts, on 28 June. According to a report by Pakistan news agency, The News, “ Mohhamed Gohir Khan is in high-security custody and will be produced at the Old Bailey on 19 July”, Monday.The target was allegedly Ahmad Waqass Goraya, a social media activist who had gone missing for some weeks in 2017. A ‘liberal’ blogger, Goraya is known for his alleged anti-establishment activism and had been accused of posting blasphemous content on his Facebook page. Blasphemy is a criminal offence in Pakistan and can attract death penalty. Goraya took refuge in Netherlands in 2017, and in an interview claimed that he was afraid for his life and had been advised to be “careful” by his friends and family. He had claimed then that his activism was “based on the universal declaration of human rights”.
“This is the least we can achieve in Pakistan – the right to assembly, equal rights for all citizens irrespective of their gender, race and faith”, he had added in the 2017 interview.Who is Mohhamed Gohir Khan? Khan, who finished school in Lahore, Pakistan, moved to London soon after. He is believed to have gained British citizenship through marriage. Khan’s financial records also show that he owned several cargo businesses, one of which was declared bankrupt in February 2020.
https://theprint.in/world/brit-pakistani-charged-with-conspiracy-to-kill-pak-blogger-to-be-produced-in-uk-court-monday/698461/
#Pakistan - Protests Held in #Kabul Over Alikhil Kidnapping
Silsila Alikhil was abducted and tortured before being released in Islamabad, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Saturday.
Pakistani media reports say that Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday directed the interior ministry to find the perpetrators behind the incident within 48 hours.
“In such a situation, doing violence against an Afghan girl is an outrage. We urge the Afghan government to follow up on this matter,” said Marya Totakhil, a protester.
“While all the other diplomats and their families have been ensured safety in Islamabad, why isn't the Afghan embassy, the ambassador and family members not safe?” asked Zainab Taraki, a protester.
Afghan forces spokesman Gen. Omar Shinwari said such an incident happened due to the “weakness” of security agencies in Pakistan.
“They not only have a responsibility toward Afghanistan but toward the whole world and they should respond about why they have failed in this matter,” Shinwari said.
Najibullah Alikhil, Afghan ambassador in Pakistan, in a tweet on Saturday said his daughter was abducted on Friday for two hours in Islamabad and was “tortured.”
Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry said Pakistan’s envoy in Kabul, Mansoor Ahmad Khan, was summoned by the ministry over the matter.
“Our consul was abducted in Peshawar and now we see that they abducted the daughter of our ambassador,” said Fahim Kohdamani, a political activist who attended the protest.
“The Pakistani government should take the issue seriously because Afghans are upset about this matter and are concerned over how Pakistan’s intelligence actions within Afghanistan even affect our diplomats in Pakistan,” said Shinkai Karokhil, an MP from Kabul, who also attended the protest.
Reports indicate that Silsila was abducted when she was shopping at a market in Islamabad. It is said that she was unconscious for a while after she was abducted and when she was found she was in another place in the city.
Her father, Alikhil, said in a tweet that she is being treated and is in a good condition.