Antisemitism in Pakistan is the presence of hostility and discrimination against Jews in Pakistan based on prejudices against the Jewish people and/or the religion of Judaism. Alongside the prevalence of general stereotypes, Jews are commonly subjected to negative views, feelings and rhetoric in Pakistan, most of which overlap with and are directly related to the antisemitic views prevalent throughout the Islamic world. Widely regarded as miserly within Pakistani Muslim circles,[1] Jews residing in Pakistan have also faced periodic intolerance by the state, which has intensified since the Islamization period of the 1980s under Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, who propelled Pakistan towards the adoption of strict and highly-conservative Islamic practices and laws.[2] The Jewish population of Pakistan has rapidly decreased since the state's founding and separation from neighbouring India in August 1947, and as of 2019[update] estimates, stands at less than 200 people amidst Pakistan's total population of over 200 million, the majority of whom are Muslims.[3]
The United States Department of State's first "Report on Global Anti-Semitism" highlighted a continuing increase in antisemitism within Pakistan:[7]
"For example, in Pakistan, a country without a Jewish community, anti-Semitic sentiment fanned by anti-Semitic articles in the press is widespread. This reflects the more recent phenomenon of anti-Semitism appearing in countries where historically or currently there are few or even no Jews. Anti-Semitism is not an issue of any significance in India, nor in the smaller South Asian countries, specifically Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, and Bhutan."[8][9]
In counter-insurgency operations during the War in North-West Pakistan, the Pakistani military has reportedly flown and dropped leaflets containing antisemitic and Hinduphobic rhetoric over the turbulent tribal region of Waziristan, which warned tribesmen to "beware of foreigners and their local supporters who had allied themselves with the Yahood Aur Hanood (lit.'Jews and Hindus')". Locals who read the leaflets were allegedly questioning the use of these terms by Pakistani forces to describe the Tehrik-i-Taliban, an Islamist terrorist organization that operates against the Pakistani state in the region.[12]
Pakistan-based militant groups
Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based Islamic terrorist group, has also expressed antisemitic views. The organization declares the Jewish people to be "Enemies of Islam" and designates Israel as an "Enemy of Pakistan".[13]
The Hasidic Jewish religious movement Chabad Lubavich had a religious centre in Mumbai that was hit by Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba militants during the 2008 Mumbai attacks in India. The sole surviving perpetrator of the attack, Ajmal Kasab, was eventually captured by Indian security forces.[14][15] Antisemitic views were evident from the testimonies of Kasab following his arrest and trial.[16]