Her friends giggled nervously under their black headscarves as they marched peacefully in the heart of Sydney with 3000 other moderate Shia Muslims.
The group met in Hyde Park yesterday to mark Ashura, the 10th day of the first month of the Islamic calendar Muharram, which honours the prophet Mohammed’s grandson Husayn ibn Ali, who was killed in 680AD.
“On the 10th day, Islam was pretty much hijacked by people who say they were Muslim but want to use oppression to take over Islam,” engineering student Ghufran Al-Khzali said of the event that triggered a schism between Sunnis and Shi’ites.
“We are hoping to spread the idea that peace can be achieved through speech and not war.”
The scheduled march came a day after Iraqi Shia religious leader Rasoul Al-Musawi, 47, was shot outside Husainiyah Nabi Akram centre in Greenacre, in western Sydney. Witnesses said the prayer hall had been threatened by men chanting slogans of Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL).
Mr Musawi reportedly is in a stable condition in Liverpool Hospital following surgery.
Tony Abbott blamed the shooting on “an ISIL death cult influence”. “The important thing is for all of us to absolutely reject this death cult,” he said.
Marcher Mehdi Mirzai moved to Australia less than two years ago and hopes Australians understand that Shia Muslims stand against the “brutality and war” of Islamic State militants.
“We don’t even think they are Muslim; Islam teaches love, peace and harmony,” he said.
Zahra Ali, 19, said Shi’ites were the main Islamic State target. “Today is against that kind of injustice and we want to spread the message that we are here for peace and justice,” she said.
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