Project Nur organizes Student Protest against the Imprisonment of Sayed Parwez Kaambaskh in front of the Embassy of Afghanistan

The student protest was held at 12:30pm to protest the imprisonment of Sayed. The 23 year old student journalist was sentenced to death for distributing an article which questioned women’s rights in Islam, to his journalism class at the University of Balkh in the northern city of Mazir-i-Sharif, Afghanistan. This has been quite controversial as Sayed was put on trial by a three-judge panel without legal representation, and with the support of the local senate and clerics.

There was a small group of students protesting peacefully in front of the embassy’s entrance. I interviewed the leader of the rally, Sana Saeed, who represents Project Nur, a student initiative of the American Islamic Congress dedicated to building an inter-ethnic and multi-faith student community. She explained her outrage at the injustice of the situation, and that everyone, and not only the American Islamic community, should stand up against this grave injustice. Her colleagues, including Samar Ahmad, stated that their demands are simple: stand up with Sayed to support freedom of the press, and demand the release of Sayed.

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