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Militant Group Vows Retaliation Following Indian Court Ruling

Niala Mohammad

   WASHINGTON - Following a ruling by India's Supreme Court over a land
   dispute between the country's majority Hindus and minority Muslims, a
   Kashmir-based militant group, with alleged ties to al-Qaida, has vowed
   retaliation and urged Muslims in the country to stand up against the
   decision.

   "We will surely take vengeance for the martyrdom of the Babri Masjid,
   and for the decision to surrender its land to the infidels and for the
   oppression carried out by the polytheist groups on the believers," the
   group Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGH) warned via their official media
   platform, al-Hurr.

   On Nov. 9, the Indian Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of the
   Ram Mandir, allowing the construction of a temple on the site of Babri
   Masjid, a centuries-old mosque that was destroyed in 1992 by an angry
   Hindu mob following tensions between Hindus and Muslims over the
   ownership of the land.

   The question of the land's ownership had lingered for decades before
   the Supreme Court ruled earlier this month in favor of the Hindu
   temple.

   Hindus believe the site of the mosque is the birthplace of their deity,
   Ram.

   The court has also ordered the government to allocate a separate piece
   of land to the Sunni Waqf Board, the main litigating body in the case,
   for the construction of a new mosque.

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