Mosque issues threats
The week's news at a glance.
Islamabad, Pakistan
Clerics at the biggest mosque in Pakistan’s capital city have set up a Taliban-style Islamic court and threatened suicide bombings if their edicts are not followed. Some 11,000 students attend the Lal Masjid mosque’s madrasa, and many of them have already begun enforcing their version of sharia, Islamic law. Recently, female students who were veiled and armed with sticks kidnapped a woman who allegedly ran a brothel. When police tried to free her, the students took several officers hostage. The mosque’s latest fatwa calls for the country’s female tourism minister to be fired because she hugged her parachuting instructor, a man, after her first jump.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Scientists invent a solid carbon-negative building material
Under the radar Building CO2 into the buildings
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Scottish hospitality shines at these 7 hotels
The Week Recommends Sleep well at these lovely inns across Scotland
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: April 1, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published