One year on..

Major Abid Majeed Malik
embraced shahadat (martydom) near Nazarabad village of the Swat valley
on 18th May 2009

Burial:
Cavalry Ground graveyard, Lahore

Find a grave

Remembering our shaheed .. 10

I'm posting more announcements of our shaheed (martyred) who are fighting for our country, our people and our freedom.

Sunday April 18th 2010

'At least 13 militants and one soldier were killed during the on-going military operation in the Orakzai agency on Sunday' (Dawn)

Friday April 23rd 2010

'Reports of fierce clashes were received from the Orakzai tribal region on Thursday and security forces claimed killing 20 militants and injuring 23 others. One soldier also lost his life. ' (Dawn)

Thursday May 6th 2010

'One soldier was killed when militants attacked a security forces patrol party in the Rownyal area of Matta here on Wednesday.

Security forces were on a routine patrol in Rownyal when armed militants attacked their vehicle, killing hawaldar Gul Mohammad. The body was sent to his hometown Rustam in Mardan.' (Dawn)

Note: I can only provide you with names if I find them in the news articles I browse. If you think something needs correcting, please do leave me a message. I try my best.

We should all pray for these men and their families and recognise their courage and sacrifice for their country.

Are you related to a soldier? Do you have memories of a loved one dying in a war? Do you have a message for the soldiers fighting? Leave me a comment.

Update June 15th 2010:
The date of the death of Gul Mohammad was not May 6th, it was May 5th. Apologies

Respect for the dead

“Who cares about the dead in a society where human life itself has no value. Buried with profound grief, the deceased are forgotten in no time. Later on, only a few manage to take out time to visit the last resting place of their loved ones, which is one of the reasons that many graveyards, declared closed years ago, do not disappoint those looking for burial space. With government and society taking no responsibility of the dead, the mafia of undertakers exploit people and make money out of the misery of the common man who is duped even after death as he finds himself sharing his eternal abode with an uninvited guest.”

This is an excerpt from a very disheartening news article which you can read further here. It highlights the problem of vandalism and the desecration of graves within Pakistani cemeteries.

This article was published in 2005, what would have changed in 5 yrs? If you live in Pakistan, then why not take a trip to your local cemetery and see how well it is being maintained? If it's in disrepair petition the government to do something about it, or organise a few members of the community to clean up the cemetery, make people aware of the issues that surround graveyards and do your bit.

Happy Mothers Day - Pakistan style

Pakistan celebrates Mothers Day on 10th May each year and so I'd like to dedicate this delicious plate of kheer to my Mom:


It's one of my fav dishes she makes :) Yes, my mom is amazing..

Photo: Google Images

How many Pakistanis live in the UK?

If you wanted to know how many Pakistanis live in the UK, what would you do? Go around counting all the Pakistanis you could see? Well, now there's no need as I've found some interesting facts on telegraph.co.uk:

• There are more than one million people in the UK of Pakistani ancestry.

• It is the second largest overseas Pakistani population after Saudi Arabia

• The West Midlands is home to 172,000 people of Pakistani ancestry, more than any other British region.

• There are an estimated 163,000 in London, 163,000 in the Yorkshire area and 133,000 in the North West of England.

• At least 3.7 per cent of children born in England and Wales in 2005 had two Pakistani parents.

• It is estimated that by 2031 there will be at least 2.63 million people of Pakistani ancestry in the UK.

• The most diverse Pakistani population is in London and is made up of Punjabis, Pathans, Urdu Speakers, Mirpuris and Sindhis.

• The largest presence in the capital is in the East London areas of Ilford, Walthamstow, Leyton, Barking and Newham.

• A significant number of Pakistanis have set up their own businesses, often employing family members.

• Well-known British Pakistanis include Anwar Pervez, whose Bestway group has a turnover of £2 billion.

• Birmingham has one of the largest Pakistani ex-patriate communities in the world.

• There are at least 110,000 Pakistanis there, amounting to 11 per cent of the city's population.

• Bradford is home to an estimated 77,000 Pakistanis making up 15.6 per cent of the city's population.

• More than 90 per cent of Pakistanis in the UK are Muslims, mainly Sunni.

Reading these facts made me smile. It seems there are quite a lot of us!

Hmm, now to get those millions of Pakistanis to become family historians and trace their roots...