Global media is reporting on yesterdays twin suicide bombings at the International Islamic University (IIUP) in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad. According to an AP report:
Pakistan shuttered all educational institutions Wednesday after twin suicide bombings at a university, showing the power of militants to disrupt everyday life as they fight back against a major army offensive in the northwest. Tuesday’s attack occurred at the International Islamic University in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, a target that surprised many in a country all too used to terror. Eight people died, including two women and the two attackers. All but one of the victims were students. “Godless, kill in God’s name,” read the headline of The News daily. Interior Ministry spokesman Rashid Mazari said schools and colleges would be closed until the end of the week so they could improve security measures. The attacks, the latest in a surge in recent weeks across the country, occurred as troops pressed ahead with a five-day-old offensive in South Waziristan, a tribal region along the Afghan border that has long sheltered the Taliban and al-Qaida. T…. The university in Islamabad is attended by 18,000 students. It has close to 2,000 international students, many from China. While it is a seat of Islamic learning, most students take secular courses such as management science or computer studies. Many students did not accept that militants were responsible for the attack and instead blamed shadowy forces out to discredit Islam or weaken Pakistan — variations of conspiracy theories that are often heard here after bombings. “It shows clearly that anti-Islamic elements are involved in these attacks,” economics student Abul Hassan said.
There are known to be important connections between the IIUP, established in 1980, and the global Muslim Brotherhood. For example, former Al-Taqwa Bank board member Ahmed Nasreddin was involved in establishing business entities in Liechtenstein and Lugano which helped fund the International Islamic University trust in Mauren, Liechtenstein. Through this trust, wealthy Arabs supported the IIUP. In addition, many of the known visiting faculty at the “Dawa Academy, located at IIUP, are associated with the global Brotherhood including:
- Abidullah Ghazi (U.S.A.)
- Ahmad Totonji (U.S.A.)
- Ahmad Von Denffer (Germany)
- Jamal Badawi (Canada)
It is not known why Islamic terrorists targeted the IIUP. Speculation has included:
- More than 6,000 women are among the 17,000 students at the International Islamic University in Islamabad. To the Taliban, women attending schools is against sharia.
- There are more than 2,000 foreign students from 45 countries (mostly from China and Africa, according to Dawn. The foreigners are prime targets for the Taliban.
- One of the suspected targets, the chairman of the Imam Abu Hanifa Block, is “known for his liberal views” on Islamic law.
- The Taliban want to provoke reactions such as the ones below – the denunciation of the military operation in South Waziristan and citizens turning on their government.