Anwar tells PKR man to apologise for 'death prayer'

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim today said he had instructed a member of his party PKR who posted a "prayer" for the death of PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and former leader Dr Mahathir Mohamad to apologise.

In a tweet just after midnight, he said that Ahmad Zaki Yamani should do so immediately. 

"I oppose and regret the rude tweet by Zaki Yamani," he said. 

As of 9am this morning, Zaki had not removed his post which he made in response to a news report on the PAS leader's health. 

"Oh Allah! Take the life of Abdul Hadi Awang. Stop the damage he is doing on the face of the earth. Stop the slander he brings against Your religion. P/S: Take Mahathir too," he wrote on Twitter.

Zaki, an exco member of PKR Youth when Shamsul was leading the wing, remained defiant when several users questioned his post.

Instead, he maintained there was nothing un-Islamic about his action, and challenged his critics to cite any religious texts prohibiting someone from praying for the death of others.

When told that there was nothing to justify his behaviour, Zaki responded that Hadi's demise would put a stop to his political arguments.

The episode came days after Anwar trained his guns on a Kedah PAS religious leader over a statement in which he prayed that the state would be protected "from falling into the hands of God's enemies".

Although Syeikh Zainul Asri Mohd Romli did not specifically mention any political groups, it drew anger from government supporters, with police reports filed against him.

Zainul has since apologised for the speech, saying he had not targeted any one but merely repeated a phrase used in the Quran.