Muhammad Saad - Pakistani journalist, media professional, and a founding member of our upcoming media platform Kulna - was abducted from his home in Lahore in the early hours of Monday morning by counter-terrorism police. We have since discovered that spurious and ridiculous charges of supporting terror have been brought against him. We are calling for his immediate release.
What Happened
At 3:30 am on Monday, twelve masked and armed officers from Pakistan's Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) entered Saad's home without a warrant and took him away. We first learned something was wrong when he failed to appear for scheduled calls the following day, and it took a further day for the truth to begin to emerge.
The charges filed against him are spurious. Officers claimed he carried an "Al-Qaeda membership card." They alleged that, at the very moment he was being arrested at home, he was simultaneously distributing flyers on the other side of the city.
To construct further pretext, officers gained access to Saad's social media account and, after scrolling back nine years, pinned a tweet in which he had been mocking politicians who glorify Osama bin Laden - presenting it, stripped of all context, as evidence of sympathy for extremism. His original pinned tweet, in which he honored Anas Al-Sharif - the beloved Palestinian journalist targeted and then smeared as a terrorist to justify his murder - was quietly removed. The parallel is not lost on us: target a journalist, then call him a terrorist to justify it.
Who Saad Is
Anyone who knows Muhammad Saad will understand how grotesque these accusations are. He is vehemently opposed to terrorism and oppression in all its forms. He is a prominent and committed advocate of debate, argument, and open discourse. He is co-host of the Eon Podcast, one of Pakistan's most widely followed political shows, and is a journalist of considerable standing.
Saad recently joined Kulna, our upcoming platform for voices committed to democracy, free expression, and human rights - as content strategist and production specialist. He has been integral to our launch preparations.
He is brilliant, outspoken, and, when the moment calls for it, unsparing. He does not defer to power. He rose to prominence without the advantages of elite circles, and that won him admirers - and, it seems, at least a few enemies willing to misuse their authority against him.
Our Assessment
Pakistan's CTD has a documented record of abusing the powers granted to it - arrests made without warrant, charges filed to settle personal vendettas, and the weaponization of counter-terrorism law to neutralize individuals whom corrupt mid-level officers wish to silence or punish. This case bears every hallmark of such abuse.
We do not know with certainty why Saad was targeted. We do not believe it was random. We believe it reflects precisely the kind of corrupt, personal-agenda-driven action the CTD has carried out before.
Pakistan has judicial processes, and Saad's legal colleagues are confident that once his case reaches a judge, the charges will be dismissed. But those processes take time, and our concern for his safety and wellbeing in detention is urgent and real.
We Ask You To Act
- Share and amplify this statement
- Tag organizations working on press freedom, protection of journalists, and free expression
- Demand Saad's immediate and unconditional release
- Call for the prosecution of the officers responsible for this unlawful arrest
The officers who orchestrated this arrest are counting on the assumption that accusations of terrorism - however implausible - will be enough to silence solidarity. They are betting that a young Muslim man can be neutralized simply by labelling him an extremist. We ask you to prove them wrong.
#ReleaseSaad