Al-Huda Institute

Al-Huda Institute, Al-Huda Islamic Institute or Al-Huda International Seminary is an "Institute of Islamic education for women",[1] a chain of religious schools with campuses in Islamabad and Karachi, Pakistan as well as in Missisauga, Canada. It is part of Al-Huda International Welfare Foundation which is run by Farhat Hashmi.

Ideology

The schools follows the Wahhabi ideology.[2]

It is known for its conservative religious syllabus with a focus on scripture.[3] Prof. Faiza Mushtaq, who did her Ph.D. on Al Huda, says the schools produce "activists and reformers" who believe they are returning to "‘real Islam, true and pure."[3] Prof. Sadaf Ahmad of Lahore University says "Al Huda founder Farhat Hashmi’s denunciation of various cultural practices and disapproval of Westerners and Indians gives women a new conception of their identity as Muslims."[4]

Canadian Branch

Al-Huda's Mississauga campus opened in 2004 and is a private school accredited by the Ontario Ministry of Education. As of 2015 it offeres two main fields of study. There were about 160 female students in kindergarten to Grade 6 attending daily classes. On evenings and weekends the school offers seminars for teenagers and adults. [5]

Students linked to terror groups

Tashfeen Malik, the Pakistani co-perpetrator of the 2015 San Bernardino attack, was a student of al-Huda before marrying and moving to California where she and her husband executed the worst terrorist attack in the U.S. since the September 11 attacks in 2001.[3]


References

  1. "About Us". Al-Huda International. Archived from the original on 20 September 2010. Retrieved 2010-09-05.
  2. Craig, Tim (9 December 2015). "Pakistan is focus in hunt". Washington Post. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Salman Masood; Declan Walsh (December 7, 2015). "Tashfeen Malik Attended Conservative Religious School in Pakistan". New York Times.
  4. Aoun Sahi (December 6, 2015). "San Bernardino assailant attended Islamic institute in Pakistan". Los Angles Times.
  5. "4 female students who sought to join ISIS attended Mississauga school". Ca.news.yahoo.com. 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2016-02-27.


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