| Abbreviation | JAS |
|---|---|
| Type | Religious organisation |
| Legal status | Active |
| Purpose | Activism |
Region | Global |
Key people |
Jamaat Ahle Sunnat (Urdu:جماعت اہلِ سنت) is aMuslim religious organization in Pakistan that represents theBarelvi movement. It is supported byMashaikh including all spiritual centers.[1] As aSunni organisation it has adopted manySufi customs and traditions.[2]Jamaat e Ahle Sunnat is a representative of sunni(sufi) nation ofPakistan. It works under the superivision of spiritual centers includingGolra Sharif,Sial Sharif,Pakpattan Sharif,AliPur Syedan Sharif and others.Pir of Golra Sharif is the current pattern in chief of the organization.
In the 20th century, the Barelvi movement spread beyond India to other parts of South Asia and the Muslim world, and became known as Ahl e sunnat wal jamat. The movement has also been associated with political movements in Pakistan, particularly the Jamiat Ulma-e-Pakistan party, which has advocated for the rights of Muslims in the country.[3][4]
The organization emphasized the importance of following the Sunnah and the teachings of the four orthodox schools of Shariah. They also placed great importance on the veneration of the Islamic prophetMuhammad and the Sufi saints.[5][6]
In 2006, a bomb attack on a Jamaat Ahle Sunnat organised event to celebrate themawlid (birthday of Muhammad) in Karachi killed at least 63 people and injured over 80.[7][8] Among the dead were several Barelvi religious figures, including the senior leadership of Jamaat Ahle Sunnat andSunni Tehreek.[9] Three men said to belong to theLashkar-e-Jhangvi were indicted for the crime.[10]
In 2011, scholars from the organization advised Muslims not to attend the funeral ofSalmaan Taseer, thePunjab governor who had recently been assassinated in response to his outspoken beliefs againstblasphemy laws.[11]
On 20 March, 2014, attackers shot and killed a Crime Branch sub-inspector and wounded another in Anwar Jafri near the Coast Guard roundabout inKorangi,Karachi. Sources attributed the attack to Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ-Pakistan). In addition, twoLashkar-e-Jhangvi members were arrested for the killing.[12][13]
It was not until February 2015 that Jamaat Ahle Sunnat started to perpetrate murders more often.[14][15] These attacks continued in 2016.[16][17][18] The most important attack in that year was on October 29, when armed assailants shot at a Shia procession inNazimabad,Karachi, killing five civilians and wounding six others. Sources attributed the attack to both Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat andLashkar-e-Jhangvi.[19][20][21]
On February 2 2018, militants shot dead a civilian and Hazrat Abbas, the caretaker of aImambargah, inDera Ismail Khan,Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.[22][23] In October, suspected Jamaat Ahle Sunnat members shot dead a police officer in Karachi. Hizbul Ahrar claimed the murder, but authorities questioned the claim and attributed the attack to Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat or Lashkar-e-Jhangvi.[24]
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