Thread by @habibi_uk

*Thread* Hate preachers crave the legitimacy they can gain from mainstream politicians. It provides a shield to fend off criticism and a pathway to greater influence.

The Labour MP Afzal Khan is happy to oblige. Or ignorant enough, which is shocking for an MP. 1/15

For example, on a number of occasions Khan has met with the ur-Rehmans, a prominent father and son duo from Pakistan. They were exposed in the UK four years ago as avid supporters of Mumtaz Qadri, the fanatic who assassinated the Pakistani politician Salman Taseer in 2011. 2/15

Taseer was murdered because he opposed Pakistan’s awful blasphemy laws. Have a look at this chilling article for one of the exposures. Note the Labour MP Siobhain McDonagh speaking up. She is excellent on these issues, unlike Khan. 3/15
ibtimes.co.uk/pakistani-hate…

Now see Hassan Haseeb ur-Rehman in action. Highly agitated, he bellows his support for Mumtaz Qadri. A big picture of Qadri is on the wall behind him. His father is seated beneath it, watching his son with approval. It is a horrifying spectacle. 4/15

These stories have been known for a long time now. Afzal Khan has been named in some of the reports. Sara Khan of the Commission for Countering Extremism has spoken up as well. 5/15
thetimes.co.uk/article/pakist…

Yet Afzal Khan met the ur-Rehmans in Pakistan just last September at their shrine in Rawalpindi. All smiles, now! 6/15

And here he is with Hassan Haseeb ur-Rehman at a Manchester event in 2018. "We Stand Together". 7/15

Khan has form here. In 2015 he spoke at an event in Oldham alongside Siraj ul-Haq, one of Pakistan’s most well-known extremists. Get a bouquet out again! 8/15

Ul-Haq too has praised the assassin Mumtaz Qadri. When Pakistan executed Qadri for his crime in 2016, ul-Haq called it "the darkest moment of the country’s history". Here he is leading prayers for the assassin after the execution. 9/15

Ul-Haq is also keen on jihad. He sees Jewish plots everywhere as well. You can read about him here, alongside a bit more on Afzal Khan's record. 10/15
hurryupharry.org/2016/05/24/lab…

In an episode which has not been reported yet, in September 2019 Khan welcomed the Pakistani preacher Ibtisam Elahi Zaheer to his home for a conversation about politics. Zaheer had warm words for Khan. 11/15
facebook.com/IbtisamElahiZa…

Zaheer is another supporter of the assassin Mumtaz Qadri. Here he calls him a “hero” and says it is OK to kill those who defame the prophet. He adds that he doesn’t care if countries including the UK call him a terrorist and ban him for this. 12/15

Zaheer has quite a catalogue. He wants a state where Ahmadi Muslims must say they are *not* Muslims, or face the death penalty. Death is also the reward for apostates from Islam, adulterers, and homosexuals. Sex slavery during wartime is permissible. And so on ad nauseam. 13/15

Afzal Khan is very quick to criticise the far right. He has also rightly lamented the loss of Jo Cox to another assassin.

Well, it would be nice if he paid a bit more attention to his own company. Is Salman Taseer's life worth less than Jo Cox's? 14/15

And perhaps Labour could have a word with the man it has just appointed Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons. 15/15