So this is the ‘Shariah’ they are striving for.
Church attack was as per Shariah: TTP - thenews.com.pk
**ISLAMABAD: The banned militant outfit Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesman Shahidullah Shahid on Friday said the September 23 suicide attack at the All Saints Church in Peshawar was every inch in accordance with the Shariah, however, neither the TTP nor any of its sub-groups was involved in it.
Talking to BBC Urdu Service over phone from an undisclosed location in the tribal areas, Shahidullah said all groups of the outfit had the same ideology.
Explaining their organisational structure, he said the outfit had scores of sub-groups operating countrywide akin to various departments of the government. He parried a question about the number of their groups though according to the media the outfit comprises 35 sub-groups.
“Our objective is clear to all (sub-groups). We have given them a blank cheque to take action against our enemy and they can never attack anyone or anything that is not our target. If we find their action beyond the set mandate, we try them in our court and punish them.”
Answering a question about the church attack, he said none of their sub-groups was involved in it, as they had investigated it thoroughly before talking to the media (that the TTP was not involved in the attack).
Talking about the objectives of the outfit, he said these had not been documented formally. Explaining their criteria of recruitment, Shahidullah said anyone wanting to see Islam as the dominant religion could join them.
“There is no bar of swearing allegiance on those intending to join us. Small groups of people join us and usually they don’t meet our Amir Sahib,” said the TTP spokesman.
Talking about the PTI chief Imran Khan’s suggestion for opening an office of the TTP in the country, Shahidullah said they had no such plans, as they had presence in Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and other cities of the country.
He said Imran Khan gave this suggestion out of sincerity and “we pray to Allah Almighty for his guidance”.When asked if the TTP does not see JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman or JUI-S chief Maulana Samiul Haq as impartial mediators, he said: “We are thinking about this but we haven’t yet made a final decision in this regard. Though the media has raised hell in this connection without any rhyme or reason.”
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