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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