The Archbishop of Canterbury (Lambeth Palace) has revoked a prestigious British honor previously awarded to Pakistani religious leader and Chairman of the Pakistan Ulema Council, Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi, in recognition of his work on interfaith harmony and tolerance. The award had been presented to him by Dame Sarah Mullally on September 11, 2026, to mark the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Lambeth Palace faced intense public and media criticism after statements made by Tahir Ashrafi in 2007 came to light; in these remarks, he had described Al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden as a “Mujahid of Islam” and “Saifullah” (Sword of Allah), and had defended bin Laden’s actions by drawing a comparison with Sir Salman Rushdie.
Critics and Human Rights Watch maintain that Tahir Ashrafi is a staunch supporter of Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy laws, which are frequently used against minorities (such as Christians and Ahmadis). Although his role in the 2012 Rimsha Masih case was praised, his stance that these laws “save lives” was deemed contrary to human rights principles.
Speaking to the BBC, Tahir Ashrafi stated that his remarks had been taken out of context and described the situation as an “unfair campaign” against him. He explained that the 2007 statements were an expression of Muslim anger regarding the knighthood conferred upon Salman Rushdie. While the UK’s National Secular Society, various journalists, and social media users welcomed the revocation of the award, they raised serious questions regarding the decision to honor him on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Meanwhile, Pakistani journalists also commented on the matter, describing Tahir Ashrafi as a figure favored by the ‘system’ and by governments across different eras.
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