Kabul Gurdwara massacre: Breakdown and Reaction

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Yesterday we reported on the tragic terror attack at Gurdwara Sri Guru Har Rai in Kabul, Afghanistan, which killed 25 people and wounded many more. Here we share facts around what happened along with reaction from around the world.

 

Latest update 27.03.20:

Reports from Kabul state Sikhs found mine-bombs planted around the Gurdwara and neighbouring complex where the community lives. The army were called in to detonate the bombs. No casualties have been reported.

 

We will provide updates asap.

 

What happened?

The original attack took place on March 25 while most governments around the globe were focused on measures to prevent the spread of the COVID19 virus. Families across the whole world remained confined inside their homes, concerned about the health and wellbeing of their loved ones and worried about whether or not they had enough food and essentials to last throughout a time spent in forced confinement.

However, the focus on social-distancing and self-isolation was interrupted early Wednesday morning by the news from Afghanistan, where the coronavirus situation had not yet escalated to a point where a full lockdown was enforced. Reports started coming through that gunmen had stormed the Gurdwara in Kabul. Initial reports stated that they had killed at least 4 people, and were caught in a stand-off with police.

At the time of the attack the Gurdwara was holding a Paath (prayer service) for the good health of all humanity throughout this pandemic, with a sizeable section of the Afghani Sikh community in attendance, as well as several from the Hindu community too. The sangat (Sikh congregation) numbered between 150-200 people when the attack started. From our sources, eyewitnesses spoke of multiple assailants and even suicide bombers among the attackers.

Narender Singh Khalsa, a member of parliament in Afghanistan told news agency Reuters in one of the earliest reports on the incident: “Three suicide bombers entered a dharamsala (place of worship). The gunmen started their attack at a time when the dharamsala (religious place) was full of worshippers.”

Harander Singh, who lost several other relatives including his wife, father and daughter, added: “The attackers arrived on the stairs and started killing the women. My nephew shouted and said to me ‘Uncle, please go downstairs’, and when I tried to go downstairs, they shot my nephew in the head.”

That same morning, Sikh PA spoke to Pritpal Singh, a respected community figure in the Afghan Sikh community known for his work on the history and plight of minorities in Afghanistan through his documentaries and book. His contacts were at the scene of the attack and echoed what was being reported; that multiple gunmen, possibly including suicide bombers, had opened fire on the sangat.

“They were dressed like the police,” he said. “An eyewitness I spoke to had seen one of them and thought it was an armed policeman who had come to help. He started to feel relieved, but then the man began shooting at him.”

The testimony was corroborated by witness Raju Singh Sonny, who told news agency AFP that a man dressed in a police uniform burst into the Gurdwara and started attacking worshippers in the main darbar (hall).

“Several other attackers also entered the building and they were going from room to room shooting people,” he added.

Photos and videos emerged before the full death-toll was known, in which gunshots could be heard. Graphic images were shared via social media of dead bodies of both the victims and one of the attackers. It was clear that four people being killed in this violence was a very conservative estimate. Reports began to state that there had been 11 fatalities.

Again, Sikh PA contacted Pritpal Singh to verify the number of deceased. He confirmed that the number of deaths was far bigger than initially thought and that there were in fact between 20 to 25 people who had been killed. He added that the figure was expected to continue rising as authorities were still at the scene finding more evidence and remains.

The names of 24 of the victims have now been announced. They are:

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1. Giani Nirmal Singh
2. Dhaiyan Singh
3. Avtar Singh
4. Kultar Singh
5. Harinder Singh
6. Iqbal Singh
7. Kulvinder Singh
8. Jagtar Singh
9. Bhagat Singh
10. Sant Singh
11. Jevan Singh
12. Sunder Singh
13. Parmeet Singh
14. Paramjeet Kaur
15. Surjeeet Kaur
16. Surila Kaur
17. Sardar Singh
18. Surjan Singh
19. Tania Kaur
20. Jagtar Kaur
21. Diljit Kaur
22. Harjeet Kaur
23. Jai Kaur
24. Joginder Singh

While the number of reported victims increased over time, the number of assailants did the opposite.

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BBC stating it was a lone gunman according to official government reports from Afghanistan.

Afghanistan’s Ministry of Interior told the press that police arrived while the shooting was still ongoing, and that the siege lasted six hours. When spokesman Tariq Arian said that the operation by the security forces was over, he told the press that all attackers had been killed but did not say how many of them there were. The Ministry of Interior later released a statement claiming that there was only one shooter, who acted alone.

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Al Jazeera quoting an eye witness that saw several gunmen, something echoed in the original government statements in Afghanistan.

Despite the suspicious change in story, some mainstream media outlets are choosing to overlook earlier statements from the government and ignore eyewitness reports, and instead accept the ministry’s statement that the devastating tragedy was caused by one man alone.

When news of the attack came to surface, the Taliban immediately denied any involvement. Instead Islamic State (IS), another fundamentalist Sunni Islamic militant group with a presence in Afghanistan, took responsibility for the attack. According to Reuters, IS said that the attack was “revenge for India’s treatment of Muslims in its portion of Kashmir” and the group warned that further attacks could take place.

Most recently, media have named the attacker as Abu Khalid al-Hindi, an Indian national.

During the aftermath of the attack, Afghanistan’s political figures came forward to offer support to the Kabul Sikh community.

The second bombing

The following morning, cremation services were held by victims of the massacre, when a bomb blast erupted. Although nobody was killed or injured by the blast, the message was clear: Afghanistan’s Sikhs would not be allowed to mourn in peace.

The claim by ISIS the attack was revenge against India for their treatment of Muslims ignores the fact that Sikhs are a religious minority in India, and like the Muslim Kashmiri community, have also suffered historic tragedies at the hands of the Indian government. The wider perception of the targeting of a Gurdwara is that this was an attack on the Sikh community, not the Indian state.

 

What is being done for the Afghan Sikhs?

With this attack being one of many and the worst since 2018, the worrying continuation and increase in the level of violence aimed at Sikhs of Afghanistan has prompted lots of discussion on efforts to support the community.

“Sikhs in Afghanistan need help from the international community,” added Pritpal Singh, who has been involved in various efforts to have Afghan Sikhs accepted for asylum in the West. “Whether it is India, UK, Europe, North America or anywhere else, the community needs somewhere that they can go to for asylum.”

The morning after the attack, MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi brought up the attack in UK parliament and called on the British Foreign Office to support minorities who sought asylum from nations such as Afghanistan. What was worrying about Dhesi’s speech was in response the Foreign Office representative in parliament stating he was unaware of the incident, concerning given the magnitude and brutality of the attack that it would not be on the FO radar.


Meanwhile in Canada, Sikh advocacy group, The World Sikh Organization of Canada (WSO) renewed its efforts to help Sikh citizens of Afghanistan. The WSO outlined its objective to push the Canadian government for a direct sponsorship program from Afghanistan for its Sikh and Hindu communities, as well as expedite processing of files for the approximately 44 already privately sponsored Afghan Sikh and Hindu families.


The organisation is also fundraising for the families of the victims of the attack via the Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation, and said that the funds will go directly to sponsoring the Sikhs and Hindus who remain in Afghanistan.

A link to the WSO donation form can be found here: https://www.themsbf.ca/donation-form.

One interesting point raised by the WSO team was the Afghan Sikhs do not qualify for acceptance into India under the recently created controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, which is allegedly aimed at helping Indian origin people claim asylum in India from neighbouring countries.

United Sikhs, a Global humanitarian charity affiliated with the United Nations, also disclosed that in the aftermath of the tragedy, the charity’s legal directors have written to the Afghanistan Ambassador asking what measures are being taken for the protection of the minorities. United Sikhs has also launched a fundraiser to help the victims and their families.

“The recent Islamic State advances and terror attacks raise a real fear that Afghan Sikhs, if not protected, will be subjected to such a level of discrimination and ill-treatment as to amount to a very real and immediate risk of persecution based on ethnic and religious identity. They are desperately in need of international protection,” the charity said in a statement.

“We urge our global community to donate generously and join us in our efforts to put an end to these atrocities and infringement of civil and human rights.”

Sun Kaur, a United Sikhs representative, said “As always, Sikhs are a community of resilience and we must again stand in solidarity to protect our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan. Our hearts are also pouring for the children who’s dreams of growing up have been destroyed. Now is the time for Sikhs to take action. Our prayers are with the Afghanistan Sikhs and we will continue our efforts to ensure Sikhs are safe and protected.”

A link to United Sikhs’ fundraiser can be found here: https://charity.gofundme.com/o/en/campaign/save-the-afghan-sikhs.

However, not all Afghan Sikhs will want to relocate from their homeland, and will resist efforts to repatriate them, something that will be considered in response to this tragic incident.

 

What other reactions have there been?

Respected journalist based in India Aditya Menon noticed and wrote about the immediate outpouring of trolling towards Sikhs from Hindu nationalists that were mocking previous Sikh efforts to include Muslims in seva (selfless service) done in the spirit of “sarbat da bhala” (Sikh philosophy meaning to do things for the benefit of the world).

Sikh educator Harinder Singh of the Sikh Research Institute also spoke to World Sikh News to offer his view that all Sikhs should share blame for allowing this to happen, opening up avenues towards analysis on how to stop this from happening again.

The Basics of Sikhi team released a video of parcharak (educator) Harman Singh discussing the issue and how Sikhs can deal with it from a spiritual perspective, whilst also taking into account Sikh teachings and history.

Various political figures condemned the attack, including the USA’s secretary of state Mike Pompeo and Canada’s NDP leader Jagmeet Singh.

The lack of media coverage on the topic prompted concern from Sikh Council UK, whilst Naujawani editor Harwinder Singh wrote about the topic, analysing the suggested ways to help as well as the place of Sikhs in Afghanistan.

Many Sikhs have highlighted the issue and the lack of intervention from any other nations as further reasoning for the Khalistan movement for a free Sikh homeland. Overall, the general reaction has seen Sikhs soul-searching about how the Sikh Kaum (nation) can finally face this issue head-on.

 

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