KABUL, Afghanistan — The Afghan government quietly dumped more than 1,000 Shiite texts and other books from Iran into a river after a local governor complained that their content insulted the country’s Sunni majority.
The move appeared to be an attempt by President Hamid Karzai’s U.S.-backed government to smooth over a potential thorn in relations between the Muslim sects.
But the government was facing condemnation Wednesday from Shiite leaders after news leaked a month after the dumping.
"It is a humiliation for all Shiites,” said Mohammad Akbari, a prominent Shiite member of parliament. He said a joint commission of Sunni and Shiite leaders should have reviewed any complaints about the books.
The dispute highlights the tension between Sunnis and Shiites in Afghanistan despite efforts to preach tolerance.
Shiites were persecuted under the largely Sunni Taliban regime that ruled the country until the U.S.-led invasion in 2001. Since then, the two sects have settled into an uneasy coexistence, with the post-Taliban constitution giving Shiites the right to create some laws that apply only to them.
by the associated press
The move appeared to be an attempt by President Hamid Karzai’s U.S.-backed government to smooth over a potential thorn in relations between the Muslim sects.
But the government was facing condemnation Wednesday from Shiite leaders after news leaked a month after the dumping.
"It is a humiliation for all Shiites,” said Mohammad Akbari, a prominent Shiite member of parliament. He said a joint commission of Sunni and Shiite leaders should have reviewed any complaints about the books.
The dispute highlights the tension between Sunnis and Shiites in Afghanistan despite efforts to preach tolerance.
Shiites were persecuted under the largely Sunni Taliban regime that ruled the country until the U.S.-led invasion in 2001. Since then, the two sects have settled into an uneasy coexistence, with the post-Taliban constitution giving Shiites the right to create some laws that apply only to them.
by the associated press
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