Parliament passes report which recommends action against Salaf, Dr. Shaheem

The Parliament has passed the report compiled by Security Services Committee (241 Committee) following its review of the Disappearances and Deaths Commission (DDCOm)’s findings into the murder of prominent politician and Islamic scholar Dr. Afrasheem Ali which recommends action against several local groups which have been categorized as a religious extremist groups including Jamiyyathul Salaf.

The report was passed with the majority vote of 47 parliamentarians this Tuesday afternoon, while 10 voted against it.

It makes 11 recommendations including action against religious extremist groups flagged in the report.

Extremist groups:

• Jamiyyath Salaf
• Local Al-Qaeda branch
• Local group affiliated with Islamic State (IS)
• Jabhat al-Nusra (al-Qaeda in Syria or al-Qaeda in the Levant)
• Extremist groups which operate near Masjid al-Furqan

DDCom, in its investigative report on the high-profile murder, referred to a press statement Salaf issued against Dr. Afrasheem in 2018, in which it accuses him of engaging in the sin of shirk, and warns the public against following his fatwas.

The commission said it found Salaf attempted to incite hatred against Dr. Afrasheem, exposing him to threats to his life.

• Identifying the number of local jihadist groups, their cells, and members.
• Identifying the exact value of the contract issued for Dr. Afrasheem’s murder, the money trail.
• Identifying the local jihadist groups mentioned in the report.
• Identifying those involved in the cover-up of the murder.
• Investigating possible involvement of police or Immigration
• Establishing the current whereabouts of the people named in the report.
• Instructing relevant State authorities on the immediate measures which need to be put in place in response to the report.

The committee report also called on other additional measures. Dr. Afrasheem was murdered on October 2, 2012, inside his residence in H. Funviluge.