Thousands To Pray In London For Persecuted Ahmadi Muslims

Thousands of people will gather to pray in south London on Friday after a series of attacks against Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan.

The Baitul Futuh Mosque has issued an open invitation to join Friday prayers this week in "solidarity with victims of persecution" in Pakistan.

Armed security guards the Ahmadi's Batul Noor mosque in Lahore against attacks.Reuters

At least one Ahmadi, a minority Muslim sect, was killed in Punjab on Monday after around a two thousand strong Sunni mob stormed a mosque.

Sayed Sibtul Hasan Shah, who led the protest, said the campaign has "succeeded as Ahmadis have been driven out of the mosque", according to The Express Tribune.

The latest attack fell on the Prophet Mohammed's birthday and came despite resistance from police.

The Ahmadi minority holds that a prophet followed the Prophet Mohammed, who founded Islam. But that view runs counter to the mainstream Muslim belief that Mohammad was the last of God's messengers.

In 1974, a Pakistani law declared Ahmadis non-Muslims and in 1984, a new law made it possible to jail Ahmadis for "posing as a Muslim" or "offending a Muslim's feelings".

"Police tried its best to stop the attackers but failed because of slim deployment," Malik Nawaz, the police officer in charge of the Choa Saiden Shah area where the attack took place, told Reuters.

"Later, high officials reached the spot with more troops and chased out the occupants."

Rafiq Hayat, national president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in the UK, described it as an "orchestrated and pre-planned campaign".

The slogan 'love for all hatred for none' is the motto for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in the UK

He warned the anti-Ahmadiyya group responsible, the Khatme Nabuwwat, had branches in Britain raising fears of similar attacks in the UK.

The prayer event on Friday comes after the Ahmadiyya headquarters in Pakistan was raided last week by counter terror police. Four Ahmadis were arrested.

Hayat added: "We call upon the international community to put pressure on Pakistan for the immediate release of the Ahmadis arrested and prevent any further attacks on the community.

"Bringing to justice the perpetrators of this heinous attack is of paramount importance."