1st Muharram 1436, 25th October 2014

Hundreds of thousands attended Professor Ghulam Azam’s Janazah which was held after Dhuhr prayers at Baitul Mukarram Mosque in Dhaka. In a fitting tribute to the great leader and Islamic personality, the streets were filled with mourners attending to pay their last respects. The funeral procession and prayers were all conducted peacefully and without incident, despite a heavy police presence. The indignity and hardship of his last years due to the illegal and politically motivated trial conducted by the Awami League government can never be forgotten. The family have found comfort in knowing he was honoured in death with something akin to a state funeral and a dignified burial beside his father in the family graveyard. May Allah accept good deeds and sacrifice in the service of Islam and Bangladesh.

His Janazah was led by his son, former Brigadier General Amaan Azmi. He also gave a powerful speech to the crowd which moved many listeners to tears, speaking of his father’s sincere love for Islam and his hope that many more will continue to be inspired by him. The family are particularly indebted to Amaan for providing constant support to his parents in the face of unrelenting pressure from the government and media.

In addition to the main Janazah prayer, many more thousands attended funerals in absentia which were performed all over Bangladesh and in many other countries around the world on Friday and Saturday. Prayers were led by the eminent scholar, Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi in Doha, Qatar and in the UK, USA, Finland,Turkey, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and India. He was particularly revered in Turkey as a  close friend of the former Turkish premier, Necmettin Erbakan, and his death was reported as front page news by a national newspaper, as well as by many Turkish supporters on Twitter.

We continue to uphold Ghulam Azam’s innocence and to denounce the International Crimes Tribunal which has led to the wrongful arrest and imprisonment of opposition leaders in Bangladesh. We have no doubt that the trial failed in its aim to provide justice for those who suffered in 1971 and has victimised those who politically opposed independence. Our prayers are with those who remain in custody and with the family of Abdul Quader Mollah.