Press Release
Hizb ut Tahrir is Political Party Whose Ideology is Islam. It Has No Relations with Militancy Whatsoever

We hereby write to the Dawn Editorial Team, regarding a defamation of Hizb ut Tahrir in the column entitled, “Fourth Schedule: Combating terrorism or silencing dissent?” The article was published on 16 October 2024, and was written by Zia Ur Rehman, who also writes for the New York Times. He wrote, “Historically, the Fourth Schedule has targeted hardcore militants, including members of proscribed outfits such as the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Hizbut Tahrir.”

The claim that Hizb ut Tahrir is a militant organization is factually incorrect and a defamation. Hizb ut Tahrir does not carry weapons, because that contradicts the methodology of the Prophet (saw) in establishing the Islamic state, as he (saw) relied on political work and did not use material work. When the people of the Second Pledge of Aqaba (the Pledge of Nussrah) asked his permission to fight the people of Mina, he (saw) answered them by saying, «لم نؤمر بذلك» “We have not been ordered to fight yet.”

Hizb ut Tahrir has nothing to do with militancy. However, the rulers of Muslims fear the work of Hizb ut Tahrir because the Khilafah project is a practical ideological and political alternative to the current world order. The rulers of Muslims cannot intellectually counter the ideological stances of Hizb ut Tahrir. They, thus resort to lies in order to defame the political and ideological work of the Hizb. They manufacture a justification for denying members of the Hizb their political rights.

Several members of Hizb ut Tahrir, including highly educated political activists, have been in the government’s Fourth Schedule for almost a decade now. This has allowed the regime to persecute these individuals just because they want to establish the Khilafah Rashidah (Rightly-Guided Caliphate) on the Method of Prophethood in Pakistan. The rulers deny them their right to movement, and their right to conduct financial transactions. The Dawn Newspaper’s inaccurate portrayal of such political activists as militants, helps the government in its persecution of political activists, and preventing Islamic political expression.

If the Dawn Newspaper seeks to reshape Pakistan’s intellectual and political landscape, does it befit its integrity to publish fake news? We request that the Dawn Editorial Team corrects the wrong impression its inaccurate reporting has created about Hizb ut Tahrir. We request it publishes the following clarification, “Hizb ut Tahrir is a political party whose ideology is Islam. It undertakes political and intellectual work to establish the Khilafah Rashidah. It has no relations with militancy whatsoever.” We have the right to be represented accurately in a national daily, which prides itself on its integrity and accurate reporting.

Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir
in Wilayah Pakistan