A rchive Date
[ 19-10-2001 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Pakistan ]
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[http://salon.com/news/wire/2001/10/18/taliban_graduates/index.html
Taliban graduates ready for holy war
By Riaz Khan
Oct. 18, 2001 | AKORA KHATTAK, Pakistan (AP) -
Raising their right hands in the air under posters of Osama bin Laden, 1,100 students graduated Thursday from an Islamic religious school in Pakistan and swore oaths to join a holy war against the United States in Afghanistan.
The ceremony at Pakistan's most militant Islamic school, or madrassa, marked a milestone in the lives of the young scholars, who range in age from their late teens to mid-20s.
"I have completed my education and now I'm going to Afghanistan," said Abdul Manan, 25, his head draped in the new white turban bestowed on graduates. "We are ready to sacrifice our lives for a noble cause."
Drawing boys from mostly impoverished families, Islamic schools offer a curriculum heavy on the Quran, the Muslim holy book. The more hardline, such as the Haqqani school here, are recruiting grounds for militant groups seeking passionate young fighters.
Haqqani, in the Northwest Frontier Province bordering Afghanistan, claims among its alumni at least 17 regional leaders of the Taliban government in Afghanistan.
Young Islamic scholars are known as "Taliban" - a word that simply means "students" in local languages - although the Islamic regime next door took the name as well. Being a Taliban scholar doesn't mean a young man necessarily supports the regime in Afghanistan - nor does swearing an oath mean all Thursday's students will necessarily take up Kalashnikovs.
But clearly, the 12-day-old air campaign against Afghanistan - meant to force the Islamic regime to hand over terror suspect bin Laden - has increased the zeal of many of the young students here.
Thursday's graduation played out under huge pictures of bin Laden, with a Kalashnikov placed below his image. Proud families draped some young sons with garlands after the ceremony.
Maulana Samiul Haq, leader of the Pakistan's pro-Taliban Jamiat Ulema Islam group, handed out certificates of graduation. The ceremony had some young men weeping with fervor as Haq prayed that God would punish the oppressors - clearly, the United States.
More tears came as Haq evoked the struggle of Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Taliban's supreme leader in Afghanistan. "On one side is (President) Bush, with all his military might - and on the other is a poor man, Mullah Omar, who is on the side of God," Haq said. "We are facing the worst kind of crisis because of the American attack on Afghanistan," Haq said.
Asking young men to raise their right hands, the cleric swore them to join the fight. "It is the duty of all students to participate in holy war," he said.
Associated Press
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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