Two Pakistanis sentenced to 14 and 4 years in prison for urging the killing of far-right activist Wilders

September 9 () –

A court in The Hague has sentenced two Pakistani citizens to 14 and four years in prison for having called on their followers to assassinate the leader of the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), Geert Wilders.

The 14-year sentence was handed down to spiritual leader Mohamed Ashraf Asif Yalali, 56, while Saad Husain Rizvi, 29, a leader of the Tehreek e Labaik Pakistan (TLP) party, was sentenced to four years in prison, Dutch public television NOS reported.

The court found it consistent that Yalili’s followers took his words seriously and found him guilty of inciting a crime with terrorist objectives.

Rizvi, however, was acquitted of a terrorist offence due to lack of evidence, the court said, and his sentence was therefore significantly reduced from the six years requested by the prosecution.

Neither of the two convicts are in the Netherlands and there is no extradition treaty in force, so Islamabad is under no obligation to arrest or hand over the two men.

Following the verdict, Wilders expressed his satisfaction. “I hope that the Dutch government will also do everything possible to ensure that those involved comply with the sentences,” he appealed. “It is also an important international signal that issuing a fatwa against a member of parliament will not go unpunished,” he added.

The condemnation stems from threats from Pakistan after Wilders announced a contest in 2018 for comic strips themed around the Prophet Muhammad with a prize of $10,000. The contest ultimately did not take place.

The case is similar to that of former Pakistani cricketer Khalid Latif, who was sentenced in absentia to 12 years in prison last year for inciting the murder of Wilders.