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Abdul Sattar Edhi Passes away

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Abdul Sattar Edhi: He was a hero to Pakistan’s poor and needy
By Max Bearak July 8 at 4:58 PM
Abdul Sattar Edhi was a beacon of hope in a country too often mired in despair. He was an ascetic in a country where politicians regularly skim millions of dollars through corruption; a humanitarian in a country rife with sectarian hatred and violence; and ultimately the provider of public services in a country where the government often fails to provide even the most basic ones, like adequate hospitals and ambulances.

In the course of his lifetime, he had gone from being a refugee to running Pakistan's most renowned philanthropic organization, the Edhi Foundation. Established in 1951, the foundation currently runs hospitals, orphanages, morgues, legal aid offices, centers for the abandoned and drug-addicted, and has almost 2,000 ambulances, which it dispatches to the scenes of the terrorist attacks that occur with alarming frequency across the country.

The 88-year-old died Friday night in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city. He had been ill for weeks, and had needed a new kidney since 2013, but was too frail for a transplant. His family's announcing of his death led to an outpouring of grief.
Edhi's foundation had no qualms about serving Pakistan's religious minorities. Once, when he was asked why he was okay with his ambulances picking up Christians and Hindus, he snarkily replied, "Because my ambulance is more Muslim than you."

Edhi was well known for his minimalist lifestyle. He reportedly had only two pairs of shalwar kameez, the billowy set of clothing commonly worn by men in Pakistan. He collected much of the operating costs for his foundation through donations from regular middle-class people. He would sit cross-legged and they would leave rupee notes near his lap. He slept in a room attached to his foundation's office for most of his life.

"Social welfare was my vocation, I had to free it," he said in his autobiography, "A Mirror To The Blind."

He avoided controversy, and was seen by many as a hero. Below are photos of the varied services his foundation provided to Pakistan's poor.

Amjad Sabri, was gunned down in his car, also in the city of Karachi. His music was immensely popular in Pakistan and his killing shocked many Pakistanis. The photo below shows Sabri and Edhi's portraits painted side by side, on a wall in Karachi, a city they both loved and served. Edhi had not died at the time of the picture's taking, but his illness had caused many to reflect on and pay tribute to his life.

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A man takes photograph of a family in front of murals of slain Sufi singer Amjad Sabri, left, and Abdul Sattar Edhi, right. (Shakil Adil/AP)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...hi-he-was-a-hero-to-pakistans-poor-and-needy/
 
"Please take care of the poor people of my country". His last words!

Can't express my grief, lost words....
 
Great Leader.
RIP...........
Mr. Eidhi should have state funeral.
 
Edhi’s journey

Born to a family of traders in Gujarat, Mr Edhi arrived in Pakistan in 1947.

The state’s failure to help his struggling family care for his mother – paralysed and suffering from mental health issues – was his painful and decisive turning point towards philanthropy.

In the sticky streets in the heart of Karachi, Mr Edhi, full of idealism and hope, opened his first clinic in 1951. “Social welfare was my vocation, I had to free it,” he says in his autobiography, ‘A Mirror To The Blind’.

Motivated by a spiritual quest for justice, over the years Mr Edhi and his team created maternity wards, morgues, orphanages, shelters and homes for the elderly – all aimed at helping those who cannot help themselves.

The most prominent symbols of the foundation – its 1,500 ambulances – are deployed with unusual efficiency to the scene of terrorist attacks that tear through the country with devastating regularity.

A national hero

Revered by many as a national hero, Mr Edhi created a charitable empire out of nothing. He masterminded Pakistan’s largest welfare organisation almost single-handedly, entirely with private donations.

Content with just two sets of clothes, he slept in a windowless room of white tiles adjoining the office of his charitable foundation. Sparsely equipped, it had just one bed, a sink and a hotplate.

“He never established a home for his own children,” his wife Bilquis, who manages the foundation’s homes for women and children, told AFP in an interview this year.

What he has established is something of a safety net for the poor and destitute, mobilising the nation to donate and help take action – filling a gap left by a lack of welfare state.

Mr Edhi has been nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize, and appeared on the list again this year – put there by Malala Yousafzai, Pakistan’s teenage Nobel laureate.

Condolences pour in
Abdul Sattar Edhi’s tireless work has helped save hundreds of thousands of lives and shown us what it means to be a man who works for the people, read a statement issued by PM Office.

“Despite all his success, he has always stayed humble, living a simple life in a small house barely large enough to encapsulate his enormous heart.”

In his most difficult hour, may Allah bestow upon him all the fortune that he bestowed upon the people of this country and treat him with the care that a man of his stature deserves, the statement added.

Other political leaders and celebrities turned to Twitter to offer their condolences.


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Jahangir Khan Tareen

✔@JahangirKTareen

RIP Edhi sb. You were a Pak miracle worker. You showed us what is possible with selfless dedication to the cause of the poor and destitute.


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Hadiqa Kiani

✔@Hadiqa_Kiani

If this news is correct then I am truly devastated, we lost a super human today. I will always be indebted to the great Abdul Sattar#Edhi.


 
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Mohammad Zubair @RealM_Zubair
The most loved Pakistani and one of our greatest heroes Edhi sb died. May Allah rest his soul in peace.


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Gen Asim Bajwa

✔@AsimBajwaISPR


With legendary Edhi sahib passing away not only Pakistan but the world will mourn the loss of a great human being.May he rest in peace-Ame




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Reham Khan

✔@RehamKhan1


Lucky to have met the man who I respect not only for his work for others but his courage to withstand bullies & bribes #Edhi

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Wasay Jalil @WasayJalil
Humanity Legend Mr Abdul Sattar #Edhi Sb is no more with us. It's a great loss 4country & his work can't be expressed in words#RIP Aameen

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Governor Sindh @drishratulebad
Paying glowing tributes to renowned social worker Sattar Edhi, Governor Sindh Dr Ishrat Ul Ebad Khan condoled the death of icon of humanity.

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Dr. Arif Alvi

✔@ArifAlvi


May Edhi Sb's Soul Rest in Peace. A great icon & hero of Pakistan who served the poor man.My condolences to his family and to all Pakistanis


Shehbaz Sharif

✔@CMShehbaz


Thank you Edhi sahib for being with us & enriching our lives with your kindness & selfless service to humanity ...




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Shehbaz Sharif

✔@CMShehbaz


Edhi sahib ... one of the greatest man of our times who was really larger than life ... an icon & inspiration to generations ... RIP, Sir!
 
RIP Allah will surely accept you into Jannah. You are the inspiration to millions. Greatest person after our beloved Prophet PBUH
 

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