Junaid S Ahmad
Two weeks after the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, political movements throughout the world, and especially in the Global South, continue to mourn what they believe is a monumental loss. Revered as a religio-political leader par excellence, Nasrallah’s fighting spirit, sense of justice and deep integrity became an inspiration globally.
People may have vehemently disagreed with some of his judgements, such as Hezbollah’s intervention in the Syrian conflict; nevertheless, most acknowledge his (and the movement he led) selfless devotion to and persistence in defence of Palestinian liberation. His formidable movement of the most oppressed sections of Lebanese society led to the historic defeat of Israel in the latter’s war on Lebanon in 2006. Hezbollah deservedly earned the reputation as the most daunting opponent of Zionism in the region.
It, therefore, seemed pretty outlandish – but expected – for White House National Security Spokesperson John Kirby to repeatedly insist that: “No one is mourning Nasrallah’s death.” His regurgitation of this talking point spoke volumes. What it translated as is that no “civilised” human, presumably white and Western, is in a state of mourning. The obvious implication is that populations of the Global South are uncivilised barbarians and sub-humans, and hence, their sentiments can be disregarded.
Indeed, far beyond Lebanon, from Venezuela to Malaysia, millions agonised over the Hezbollah leader’s death.
One of the countries that wept heavily over the Zionist murder of Nasrallah is Pakistan. In fact, the anguish has not abated. But the grieving has metamorphosed into an impassioned and indefatigable resistance against the military-civilian regime in Islamabad.
The scenes of fearless women, children and the elderly – who compose the majority of the daily demonstrators in Islamabad and Lahore – have been surreal. These have been the same protestors who have not let a day go by without having massive Palestine solidarity rallies, culminating in a whopping show of strength on the one-year anniversary of the Gaza resistance factions’ prison break. This has been all the more remarkable considering the vicious state repression of these expressions of solidarity. The generals in Islamabad are loathe to displease their Zionist patrons-masters in the West.
Decades-long infusion
of sectarianism
What has also been noteworthy is how the people of Pakistan have transcended the decades-long infusion of sectarianism in the country. The House of Saud has worked hard to ensure anti-Iran and anti-Shia sentiment. Despite the poisonous nature of this perennial propaganda, former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Movement for Justice (MFJ) proudly proclaimed their admiration of Hezbollah’s legendary leader, advertising this admiration all over social media. Moreover, the MFJ has rallied around Iran’s armed response, enthusiastically celebrating the missiles hitting military targets inside Israel.
Indeed, a message that has gone viral among MFJ activists and supporters asserts that Khan’s righteous defiance and resistance is akin to two “martyrs” according to them: the assassinated head of the politburo of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh and Nasrallah. What is significant here is not whether the comparison is accurate, but the fact that Pakistanis desire someone such as Haniyeh or Nasrallah, someone with the spirit of struggle.
This is the best indicator of where the pulse of Pakistanis is today.
The military-civilian regime in Islamabad is increasingly facing the loss of even an iota of legitimacy. The present regime has tried to ram down a constitutional amendment that would undermine the power of the Supreme Court. It would create a “Constitutional Court” that would be controlled by manipulating politicians safely in the pockets of the military establishment. The attempt at this heavy-handed measure is the immediate cause of the mass protests in the country, which have included both MFJ and non-MJF Pakistanis.
After two years of confronting some of the worst forms of state terror in the country’s history, the MFJ not only lives on, but has all but dispensed with the valid fears they have had of the “deep state” since the ouster from power of former PM Khan.
Obviously, all of this has been bad news for the praetorian guard ruling Pakistan. The generals and their hopelessly corrupt political minions, with the blessing of Washington, engineered regime change against the wildly popular cricketer-turned-politician in April of 2022. The West believed Islamabad’s military and political surrogates had eradicated the “Khan virus” once and for all.
But the people of Gaza and figures such as Nasrallah continue to inspire. All one needs to do is speak to activists on the streets of Islamabad or Lahore to realise how the resistance in the Middle East has helped rejuvenate and revitalise mass action against the despots in Islamabad.
(Professor Junaid S Ahmad teaches religion, law and global politics, and is the Director of the Centre for Islam and Decoloniality, Islamabad, Pakistan.)
