Ahmadiyya in the context of "Pandit Lekh Ram"

Islamic schools and branches have different understandings of Islam. There are many different sects or denominations, schools of Islamic jurisprudence, and schools of Islamic theology, or ʿaqīdah (creed). Within Sunnī Islam, there may be differences, such as different orders (tariqa) within Sufism, different schools of theology (Atharī, Ashʿarī, Māturīdī) and jurisprudence (Ḥanafī, Mālikī, Shāfiʿī, Ḥanbalī). Groups in Islam may be numerous (Sunnīs make up 87-90% of all Muslims), or relatively small in size (Ibadis, Ismāʿīlīs, Zaydīs).

Differences between the groups may not be well known to Muslims outside of scholarly circles, or may have induced enough passion to have resulted in political and religious violence (Barelvism, Deobandism, Salafism, Wahhabism). There are informal movements driven by ideas (such as Islamic modernism and Islamism), as well as organized groups with governing bodies (such as Nation of Islam). Some of the Islamic sects and groups regard certain others as deviant or not being truly Muslim (for example, Sunnīs frequently discriminate against Ahmadiyya, Alawites, Quranists, and sometimes Shīʿas). Some Islamic sects and groups date back to the early history of Islam between the 7th and 9th centuries CE (Kharijites, Mu'tazila, Sunnīs, Shīʿas), whereas others have arisen much more recently (Islamic neo-traditionalism, liberalism and progressivism, Islamic modernism, Salafism and Wahhabism), or even in the 20th century (Nation of Islam). Still others were influential historically, but are no longer in existence (non-Ibadi Kharijites and Murji'ah).

Muslims make up approximately 95 percent of the population of Mali. The majority of Muslims in Mali are Non denominational and Malikite Sunni, influenced with Sufism. Ahmadiyya and Shia branches are also present.

Islam has been present in West Africa for over a millennium, and Mali has been the center of various Islamic empires, such as the Ghana Empire and the Songhai Empire. Mali was a French colony and now follows the secular French model in which the government does not intervene in religious matters.

In Cameroon, Islam is a minority faith practiced by around 30.6% of the total population as of 2022. Among Cameroonian Muslims, approximately 40% identify themselves as Non-denominational, 27% Sunni, 2% Ahmadi and 3% Shia, while the majority of the rest do not associate themselves with a particular group and sect.

In Cameroon, 48% of Muslims belong to a Sufi Tariqah (order). The Fulani, a pastoral nomadic group, spread Islam in early 19th century West Africa largely through commercial activity and Sufi brotherhoods (Qadiri and Tijani). In the northern provinces, the locally dominant Fulani is overwhelmingly Muslim. Other ethnic groups, known collectively as the Kirdi, generally practice some form of Islam. The Bamoun ethnic group of the West Province is also largely Muslim.

Pakistanis (Urdu: پاكِستانى قوم, romanized: Pākistānī Qaum, lit. 'Pakistani Nation') are the citizens and nationals of Pakistan, as well as their descendants in the Pakistani diaspora or the people who trace their ancestry to Pakistan. Constituting the fifth-largest national group in the world, Pakistan has a population of over 241.5 million, forming a multicultural society. Pakistan has the second-largest Muslim population in the world (as of 2023), sitting at 96 per cent; with significant Hindu, Christian, Ahmadi, Sikh, Zoroastrian and other religious minorities. The majority of Pakistanis natively speak languages belonging to the Indo-Iranic family, alongside a minority of Sino-Tibetan, Dravidian and isolate languages.

Located in South Asia, the country is also the source of a significantly large diaspora, most of whom reside in the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf, with an estimated population of 4.7 million. The second-largest Pakistani diaspora resides throughout both Northwestern Europe and Western Europe, where there are an estimated 2.4 million; over half of this figure resides in the United Kingdom (see British Pakistanis).

The biblical account of the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus (ʿĪsā) recorded in the Christian New Testament is traditionally rejected by the major branches of Islam, but like Christians they believe that Jesus ascended to heaven and he will, according to Islamic literary sources, return before the end of time. The various sects of Islam have different views regarding this topic; traditionally, mainstream Muslims believe that Jesus was not crucified but was bodily raised up to heaven by God, while Ahmadi Muslims reject this belief and instead contend that Jesus survived the crucifixion, was taken off the cross alive and continued to preach in India until his natural death.

The official religion of Pakistan is Islam, as enshrined by Article 2 of the Constitution, and is practised by an overwhelming majority of 96.35% of the country's population. The remaining 3.65% practice Hinduism, Christianity, Ahmadiyya (considered a non-Muslim group as per the Pakistani constitution), Sikhism, Zoroastrianism and other religions.

Muslims comprise a number of sects: the majority practice Sunni Islam (estimated at 85-90%), while a minority practice Shia Islam (estimated at 10-15%). Most Pakistani Sunni Muslims belong to the Hanafi school of jurisprudence, which is represented by the Barelvi and Deobandi traditions. However, the Ahl-i Hadith movement has also gained popularity together with Wahhabi influence from the Middle East. The majority of Pakistani Shia Muslims belong to the Twelver Islamic law school, with significant minority groups who practice Ismailism, which is composed of Nizari (Aga Khanis), Mustaali, Dawoodi Bohra, Sulaymani, and others.

Islam in Denmark, being the country's largest minority religion, plays a role in shaping its social and religious landscape. According to a 2020 analysis by Danish researcher Brian Arly Jacobsen, an estimated 256,000 people in Denmark—4.4% of the population—were Muslim in January, 2020. However, according to figures reported by the BBC in 2005, about 4.8% of the Danish population at the time are Muslim (around 270,000 Muslims of 5.6 million). The figure has been increasing for the last several decades due to multiple immigration waves involving economic migrants and asylum seekers. In 1980, an estimated 30,000 Muslims lived in Denmark, amounting to 0.6% of the population.

The majority of Muslims in Denmark are Sunni, with a sizeable Shia minority. Members of the Ahmadiyya community are also present in Denmark. In the 1970s Muslims arrived from Turkey, Pakistan, Morocco and the former Yugoslavia (mainly Bosnia) to work. In the 1980s and 90s the majority of Muslim arrivals were refugees and asylum seekers from Iran, Iraq, Somalia and Bosnia. In addition, some ethnic Danes have converted to Islam; In 2017, close to 3,800 Danish Muslims were converts to the religion. According to a survey by Aarhus University, the number of mosques is on a steady upward trajectory, rising from 115 in 2006 to 161 in 2017 —an increase of 40%.