Death Threats By Pakistan Taliban Force Cellphone Dealers To Close

People in the Khyber Agency- a tribal region in northwest Pakistan- will no longer have limited to no access to cell phones and computers because those oh-so enlightened Taliban have threatened owners of such businesses with death. Apparently, Tehrik-i-Taliban left a slew of pamphlets signed by head enlightened one Hakimullah Mehsud on shop doors of Insaf Market telling the owners to shut down their stores or face punishment. The Taliban have deemed ringtones (along with "obscene videos") a no-no, and since people can download those nasty ringtones onto cellphones, those must go too; although it's perfectly okay for them to use the technology.

So, rather than lose their lives, some shopkeepers in the Landi Kotal Bazaar have closed shop.

Why punish the cell phone dealer rather than the individual who downloads obscene material and ringtones onto his mobile phone or computer? It's a huge stretch, but since the shop owners are earning money from the sale of cellphones and computers to nasty people who download all that nasty haram (forbidden) stuff, the money the shop owners make is therefore 'immoral and un-Islamic'. Yeah, I know, it hurts my head, too. I guess no "maybe, baby" ringtones for those Taliban types on their mobiles.

The pamphlet said:

“This is the last warning to all dealers and the market owners to quit such un-Islamic business. We will kill the shopkeepers, owners of the market and would also target their houses as they are not doing any service to their Muslim brothers and sisters."

Even though officials promised to protect the business owners, there was no beefed up security, which in turn prompted some to close their shops. They obviously decided not to take any chances since the Taliban had followed through with a previous threat back in January when a few businesses were destroyed in that same market.

Sad that the Khyber region- which has the highest rate of literacy in Pakistan- has to deal with a group of people occupying the lowest rung on the evolutionary ladder.