Intro
Abid Haneef converted to Ahmadiyya on August 13th, 1948 (see page 24)(and his wife Saliha Hanif, also spelled Saleha Haneef, she was Lajna President from 1953-1954). They were all living in NY in 1956-1959. While in New York (1948–1961) he worked with Zafrullah Khan extensively, since Zafrullah Khan was always visiting at the United Nations headquarters in NY. Abid Haneef was the President of the NY jamaat from 1956-1959. He was President of the Boston Jamaat from 1961 to 1989 (See page 25).
Abid Hanif confesses to be involved in the famous Mubahila challenge vs. Billy Graham, which was issued by Sheikh Mubarak Ahmad in 1963. In fact, Abid Hanif and 2 other Ahmadi’s were arrested for their antics vs. Billy Graham. At the #WCJS25 #WCJS2025 #WestCoastJalsa, an Ahmadi named Usman Jamil revealed a story wherein Zafrullah Khan was unhappy about this arrest and he kept asking Abid Hanif and his associate to say istaghfar (20:17 time stamp)(7:07:04).
His father was also acquainted with Rashid Ahmad, who was allegedly the first ever African American missionary, however, it seems that he was demoted as a result of sexual impropriety and made into a “Waqf-e-Zindagi”.
In 1973, per the Moslem Sunrise of Jan-Feb-1974, there was a 7-man delegation to Rabwah from the USA, this was the first time something like this had ever happened. Members of the 7-man delegation were Rashid Ahmad (leader), Abid Haneef (Boston), Abdur-Raqib Wali (Boston), Abdul Kareem of Boston, Fazal Omar of Waukegan, Hasan Hakeem of Waukegan, Ill and Alhaji Abdur Rahim Zafar of Dayton later joined the delegation in Rabwah.
In 1982, he took his son Azhar Haneef to Qadian and Rabwah. Azhar Haneefdedicated his life to Ahmadiyya at the 1982 Jalsa Salana Rabwah. In the 80’s and 90’s, Abid Haneef continued as a high ranking pioneer and President of the Boston jamaat.
In 1986, he was interviewed by Richard Brent Turner (See page 195 & 274 of “Islam in the African-American Experience”) on 12-29-1986.
In 2025, at the #WCJS25 #WCJS2025 #WestCoastJalsa, an Ahmadi named Usman Jamil revealed a story wherein Zafrullah Khan was unhappy about this arrest and he kept asking Abid Hanif and his associate to say istaghfar (20:17 time stamp)(7:07:04).







