{"id":2183,"date":"2012-08-01T12:01:04","date_gmt":"2012-08-01T12:01:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/wp3\/?p=2183"},"modified":"2012-08-01T12:01:04","modified_gmt":"2012-08-01T12:01:04","slug":"drones-scare-pakistanis-away-from-tarawih","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sunnionline.us\/english\/2012\/08\/01\/2183\/","title":{"rendered":"Drones Scare Pakistanis Away From Tarawih"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fears of attacks by US drones are scaring away many Pakistani Muslims in the restive tribal belt from performing the Tarawih (nightly prayers) during the holy fasting month of Ramadan.
\u201cThis is unfortunate, but true, that many, including myself are not offering Tarawih this year because of fear of drone attacks,\u201d Rahat Dawar, a resident of Dattakhel, a small town in North Waziristan, told OnIslam.net.
Dattakhel has been one of the prime targets of US drone attacks, killing hundreds of tribesmen, including women and children during last five years.
\u201cDrones usually target gatherings considering them Taliban meetings,\u201d said Dawar.
\u201cBut, they do not achieve their targets all the time,\u201d he added, referring to the killings of hundreds of civilians, including women and in children in drone attacks since 2004.
The US has been launching drone attacks in Pakistan\u2019s tribal belt near borders with Afghanistan to track down militants from Al-Qaeda and Taliban.
Over 300 people have been killed in 29 drone attacks in North and South Waziristan in the first seven month of this year.
According to New American Foundation, and Human Rights Watch, nearly 50 percent of the drone targets were innocents.
Pakistan publicly condemns the drone attacks, terming them counterproductive vis-\u00e0-vis the so-called war on terror.
However, analysts believe that there is a tacit agreement between Islamabad and Washington whereby Pakistan publicly denounce the attacks in order to stem the growing public anger but will not take any action against them.
Although Washington carried out only two drone attacks during the first ten days of Ramadan, locals often see the unmanned predators hovering in the area, causing panic among them.
\u201cWhether it is day or night, you see drones flying in the area almost two to four times a day,\u201d Rahat said.
\u201cI did go to offer the first Tarawih, but the annoying sounds of drones flying over our heads kept me disturbed.
\u201cEvery time I bowed I felt the drone was going to fire the missile, and I would not be able to get to my feet again,\u201d a virtually disturbed Rahat said.<\/p>\n

Death Fear<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gul Wazir Dawar, a resident of Ghulam Khan town, which borders northeastern Khost province, also stops performing prayers outdoors over fears of drone attacks.
\u201cI feel ashamed that I am not going to offer prayers just because of death fear,\u201d Gul, owner of a utility shop, told OnIslam.net.
\u201cDrones cannot figure out whether it\u2019s a militants\u2019 meeting or a religious congregation. They just fire the missiles,\u201d he said, referring to various misguided attacks.
A year and a half ago, a US drone attacked a tribal assembly (Jirga) near Miramshah, the capital of North Waziristan, which was held to resolve a local dispute, killing two dozens of tribesmen and security personnel.
\u201cAnd this is not the end,\u201d Gul said.
\u201cThose who retrieve the charred bodies of the victims, drones fire on them too.\u201d
Gul observes that people in densely-populated areas of Waziristan still go to mosques to offer prayers and Tarawih because drones do not hit the populated areas.
\u201cBut people from areas like ours are in real trouble,\u201d he said.
\u201cIt seems if the sounds of flying drones has settled in my mind,\u201d he said, referring to the areas bordering neighboring Afghanistan, which are considered the strongholds of powerful Haqqani network, which the US blames it for attacks against NATO forces in Afghanistan.
\u201cWe prefer to offer prayers and Tarawish at home,\u201d a disappointed Gul said.
However, there are many tribesmen who are undaunted.
\u201cWe are not safe anywhere (in North Waziristan),\u201d Hameed, a farmer from Dattakhel town, told OnIslam.net.
\u201cDeath can catch us anytime anywhere, so why should we miss prayers and Tarawih in mosque?\u201d
He sees prayers and Tarawih as a treatment of different psychological disorders facing Waziris due to drone attacks and fierce fights between Taliban and security forces.
\u201cWe should be positive. Allah has given us another Ramadan. No one knows he or she would be alive next year,\u201d he said.
\u201cTherefore, we must not miss this opportunity just because of drone fears.
Hameed says that missing prayers and Tarawih in mosques just because of fear will invite the wrath of Allah.
\u201cIt is, rather, high time to get close to Allah, and seek his blessings,\u201d a humble Hameed said.<\/p>\n

Source: OnIslam<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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