“Forced to Flee: Pakistan’s Deliberate Creation of a Hostile Environment for Ahmadis”
Eid 2025 Marks an Alarming New Depth in Religious Apartheid Against Ahmadis
Faith is not a crime. Worship is not provocation. Yet in Pakistan, the act of praying has become a punishable offense—especially if you’re an Ahmadi.
Following earlier state directives from Rawalpindi and Lahore banning Ahmadis from offering Eid prayers, the Eid day of March 31, 2025, witnessed a terrifying new scale of violence. What began with legal notices has now escalated into a full-fledged, coordinated campaign of genocidal intimidation, involving mob attacks, mass arrests, vandalism, and desecration of places of worship across multiple cities in Pakistan.
This year, especially during the holy month of Ramadhan (March 01 – March 31), anti-Ahmadi persecution reached a historic high. See video.
Link to video on social media: https://x.com/faith_defence/status/1908208517137219661?s=46&t=qJrK62IRsj8eXEilMTXPBA
Nationwide Incidents on Eid Day (March 31, 2025)
Azizabad, Karachi
- A violent mob from Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), in full view of the police, attacked the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Mosque during Eid prayers.
- Instead of protecting the victims, police detained 5 Ahmadis, sealed the mosque, and allowed it to be vandalized.
- Hate slogans such as “Ahmadis are Infidels,” “295-C,” and “TLP” were spray-painted on the mosque walls.
- This sealed mosque has left the local Ahmadi community without a place to pray—a gross violation of their fundamental right to worship.
North Karachi
- Another Ahmadiyya Muslim Comunity Mosque in Sector 11B, North Karachi came under attack from a TLP mob.
- 32 Ahmadis were arrested from the North Karachi Prayer Centre, taken to the police station and later released.
- The police, instead of stopping the attackers, again sided with the mob and sealed the mosque under mob pressure. The mosque was also desecrated with hate graffiti.
- This occurred under the jurisdiction of the Sir Syed Police Station.
Gulshan-e-Jami & Landhi, Karachi
- Police forcibly disrupted Eid prayers at Ahmadi prayer sites.
- Ahmadis were harassed and intimidated into stopping prayers.
- Visual evidence confirms direct police involvement in violating the Ahmadis’ religious freedom.
Lahore
- Ahmadis were barred from gathering for Eid prayers at all locations, including following major locations:
- Garhi Shahu (central worship site)
- Model Town
- Allama Iqbal Town
- Extremist TLP activists rallied outside Ahmadi worship sites chanting hate slogans and threatening violence.
- This state-sanctioned restriction stems from a March 20 notice by the Lahore Deputy Commissioner, declaring such gatherings illegal—referencing a Supreme Court Application (No. 1113/2024) and treating the matter as “TOP PRIORITY”. See video.
Link to video on social media: https://x.com/faith_defence/status/1908208517137219661?s=46&t=qJrK62IRsj8eXEilMTXPBA
Rawalpindi
- Similar directives were issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Rawalpindi on March 25, 2025, calling for action against “unauthorised” Ahmadi Eid gatherings.
- Multiple locations saw Ahmadis blocked from praying by the police, under the influence of Fidayan-e-Khatam-e-Nabuwwat complaints.
Sialkot (Bombanwala, Daska) – A New Height of Terror
- A TLP mob of nearly 300, armed with sticks and weapons, attacked the Ahmadi Mosque during Eid prayers.
- Worshippers were beaten, injured, and forced to flee; many left their homes to escape the threat of death.
- Chants of “Wajabul Qatal” (liable to be killed) and death threats (“Beheading if you stay“) filled the air.
- Security cameras were destroyed, homes were targeted, and community members are now in hiding, fearing for their lives.
- A Police report (FIR) was eventually filed, but the trauma and terror remain.
Other Locations in Punjab
- Sheikhupura (Farooqabad, Kajhar, Kot Abdul Malik, Bidadpur) and Sahiwal (6/11-L) saw similar police-backed harassment campaigns to stop Eid prayers.
- Ahmadis were either barred, harassed, or threatened into cancelling their religious gatherings.
Pattern of Escalation in 2025
This Ramadan has marked a dangerous peak in anti-Ahmadi persecution.
Since early 2025, TLP’s campaign of hate against Ahmadis has grown more aggressive, with mosques sealed, worshippers arrested, and graves desecrated. But during the holy month of Ramadan, the violence has intensified dramatically. What should be a time of peace and reflection has instead become a season of fear, with prayer gatherings disrupted, elderly men detained, and communities attacked by mobs emboldened by discriminatory laws. Backed by Sections 298-B and 298-C—and often enabled by silent or complicit law enforcement—TLP’s actions now represent not just societal bigotry, but state-supported religious persecution.
- Jan 16 – Daska: 100-year-old Ahmadi mosque demolished under TLP pressure.
- Feb 14 – Malir, Karachi: Mosque sealed; 2 Ahmadis arrested.
- Feb 28 – Sargodha & Daska: Dozens arrested, including minors and disabled persons.
- Mar 7 – Karachi: Mosque closure led to 6 arrests, 25 charged.
- Mar 11 – Bahawalnagar: Minarets destroyed by mob.
- Mar 12–13 – Okara: Violent TLP sit-in during Ramadan.
- Mar 14 – Tharo Mandi, Pasrur: 29 arrested for offering prayers.
- Mar 15 – Lahore: Extremist rhetoric glorifying violence at LHC Bar.
- Mar 19 – Talagang: Mosque security dismantled under mob threat.
- Mar 21 – Azad Kashmir: 76 Ahmadi graves desecrated.
- Mar 21 – Lahore: Mosques attacked; elderly detained, dozens arrested.
- Mar 28 – Ralioke, Sialkot: Mosque besieged during Ramadan; 6 detained.
IHRC URGENT CALL
We reiterate our demands from the original report and add:
- Immediate release of all detained Ahmadis
- Restoration of sealed mosques and prayer sites
- Accountability for law enforcement officials who enabled mob violence
- Criminal prosecution of perpetrators of the Bombanwala attack
- Recognition of the TLP as a terrorist organization
- International diplomatic pressure on Pakistan to end religious apartheid
The Pakistani state’s complicity in anti-Ahmadi violence has crossed from repression into persecution—from discrimination into genocidal intimidation. The time for silence is over.
Eid is not a crime. Worship is not terrorism. The world must stand with the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community—before it’s too late.
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