Sarfraz Ahmed Naeemi Shaheed, (Urdu: سرفراز نعیمی), (16 February 1948 – 12 June 2009) was a Sunni Islamic cleric from Pakistan who was well known for his moderate and anti-terrorist views.
[7] He knew Urdu, Arabic and Persian languages well and wrote columns in newspapers on religious issues and was the editor of monthly Arafat, Lahore.
[5] Naeemi was known for his outspoken views against suicide bombings and militancy, for openly supporting the ongoing operation by Pakistan army in Swat, and for labelling the activities of the Taliban "un-Islamic".
[8] He had also passed a fatwā denouncing suicide bombings,[9] as well as criticising Taliban leader Sufi Muhammad by saying he "should wear bangles if he is hiding like a woman".
"[2] Naeemi was the driving force behind the Tahaffuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz (TNRM), a group of over 20 Sunni parties raising voice against the violence committed by the Taliban.
In January 2009 Tahaffuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz (TNRM) held a conference in Jamia Naeemia and issued a fatwa making Jihad obligatory for all Pakistani citizens in case of an attack by India.
He raised his voice against Pervez Musharraf's decision to provide logistic support to US-led coalition in the war on terror for which he was first removed from his job as Khateeb in the government-run Auqaf Department and then arrested briefly.
[5] Naeemi frequently argued that American, Israeli and Indian Intelligence Agencies were supporting the Taliban in order to destabilise Pakistan and seize control of its nuclear arsenal.
Naeemi's son Raghib filed a complaint the following day with the police saying "Baitullah Mehsud is responsible for planning and motivating the attack that killed my father", and accused him of murder.
The head of the Muslim Students Organization of India, Shahnawaz Warsi, said "We came together to protest the ongoing killings of Sunni scholars by the Wahhabi Talibani terrorists in Pakistan".
The French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner condemned the killing calling Naeemi "a well-known Sunni cleric who was respected for his moderate views on Islam".
In a late night broadcast to the nation President Asif Ali Zardari singled out the killing of Naeemi and condemned it calling Taliban brutal and out to destroy Pakistan.