Tag: Asad Shah

The Independent has more on the murder of Asad Shah.

A fundraising page set up by the devastated customers of a much-loved Muslim shopkeeper who was killed in a “racially prejudiced” attack has so far received more than £22,000 in donations to support his family.

…

Four of his regular customers said they decided to set up a ‘Support for Mr Shah’ fundraising page on the Go Fund Me website to contribute towards the cost of his funeral and to provide financial support to his family in the coming months.

The customers wrote on the page: “Mr Shah was a popular, well-respected and much-loved member of our community and his death has devastated many.

“He was a warm and friendly man and he always went out of his way to make time to talk to you – he was more than just our local shopkeeper. He was a friend to many.”

There aren’t enough people like that in the world. We should never waste them.

Isabella Graham, 64, said Mr Shah had employed her daughter at the shop when she was younger and that she had cried when she called and told her of his death.

Placing flowers at the scene, Mrs Graham said: “He was an amazing, wonderful man, he couldn’t do enough for you.

“He wouldn’t hurt anybody. Nobody in Shawlands would have a bad word to say about him. I can’t believe he’s gone.”

Police Scotland said they have arrested a 32-year-old Muslim man in connection with the attack, which they are treating as “religiously prejudiced”.

Merciful god.

A horrible event in Glasgow Thursday night –

A well-respected Muslim shopkeeper who wished Christians a happy Easter and appeared to speak out against violence was killed in an attack police are treating as “religiously prejudiced”.

Asad Shah was found seriously injured outside his shop in Minard Road in the Shawlands area of Glasgow on Thursday night and pronounced dead on arrival at hospital.

The Scotsman says a Muslim man has been arrested.

My liberal Muslim friends on Facebook are saying Shah was an Ahmadi, and that Salafi extremists now dominate Glasgow mosque, having kicked out all the moderates.

Back to the Scotsman:

An Easter greeting from an online account apparently belonging to the 40-year-old Mr Shah, who was described as a “much loved” member of the local community and a “friend to many” had been posted earlier that day.

The Facebook message read: “Good Friday and very happy Easter, especially to my beloved Christian nation x!”.

Included in a series of posts and videos on the page in recent days were calls for peace and “love to all beloved mankind”.

Earlier this month in a video he called for a stop to “disorder” and “bloodshed” and urged people to live together in peace.

He also said: “All the religions failed to create peace and heaven on this earth, Now the situation is very critical. My dear beloved all mankind we were not created to see this kind of situation on this earth.”

All that, plus the neighbors say he was a very sweet guy. There was a vigil for him last night.

One of the vigil organisers, Eildon Dyer, said: “It was very respectful. There were a lot of people clearly very upset. There were a lot of tears and lots and lots of flowers.

“Everybody has said he was the nicest man. He was clearly much-loved. Everybody had nice stories to tell about him and warm stories. It’s just very, very sad.”

John Sargeant urges solidarity:

I wrote last year about my fears that theocratic killers would strike against other Muslims and ex Muslims in the UK. That we needed to challenge the theocratic justification that is disseminated to kill them.

This has come too late for Asad Shah. An Amahdi Muslim, the message he put up in his newsagents wishing Christians a Happy Easter summed up their philosophy of love for all, hatred for none. Hours later a Muslim stabbed him to death multiple times, and sat on his chest laughing.

The reports saying it was another Muslim that killed him, misses the nature of the attack. Shah was the wrong kind of Muslim. His killer plunged the blade into someone he regarded as an apostate – someone worthy of death.

Islamist fanatics victimize other Muslims first and most. Religious fanaticism is not good for anyone.