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Blasphemy

• Blasphemy Conviction for Online Posts

  

  In August 2023, the Christian colony of Jaranwala was filled with violence after allegations of blasphemy were made against two brothers. During the rampage, as many as 400 homes and 26 church buildings were damaged or destroyed. For more details, and to view video footage of the attacks, see this page.

• Allegations Lead to Mob Violence

  

  An angry mob consisting of hundreds of people rampaged through a Christian community in Sargodha, Punjab, on May 25th. Thankfully, police were able to disperse the crowd with tear gas and rescue at least two Christian families whose homes had been surrounded. However, significant damages took place during the mob attack, and 74-year-old Nazir Masih was left with life-threatening injuries. Stirred up by Islamic clerics who accused Nazir of blasphemy, the mob ransacked and burned the Christian man's home and shoemaking business. The crowd also attacked other Christians in the community and threw stones at responding police, injuring at least ten officers.

• Pastor Meets with Imprisoned Zafar Bhatti

  

  Zafar Bhatti has been held in prison for 12 years on allegations of blasphemy. Although initially sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017, the Christian man's punishment was changed to include the death penalty in January 2022. During his time in prison, Zafar has faced various health issues. Diagnosed with diabetes, he suffered two minor heart attacks in 2019 and another in 2020. For previously published reports on Zafar's case, go to this page.

• New Look at Evidence Against a Long-Imprisoned Christian

  

  In 2002, Anwar Kenneth received a court verdict sentencing him to death, purportedly for defending Christianity in the days following the September 11th attacks on the New York World Trade Centre. He had written a letter in which he defended his Christian faith and, as a part of that, expressed his belief that Muhammad, the founder of Islam, was not a prophet of God.

• College Student Accused of Blasphemy

  

  Ashbeel Ghauri was recently arrested following accusations from a former classmate that he had allegedly disrespected Islam during a WhatsApp conversation. According to Ashbeel's father, Babar, the young Christian man had engaged in conversation several times with Sheraz Gulistan and other Muslims who attempted to convert him to Islam. Babar believes that Sheraz implicated Ashbeel after the young man refused to renounce his faith in Christ.

• Christian Sentenced to Life in Prison for Alleged Blasphemy

  

  On March 18th, 2022, Fansan Shahid was taken from his home in Lahore and charged with blasphemy. The charges arose after the Christian man purportedly commented on photos of suicide bombings that occurred in Sri Lanka. As the attackers appeared to be Muslims, his accuser alleged that Fansan's social media comment insulted the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

• Acquittals in Blasphemy Cases

  

  In August 2023, thousands of citizens demonstrated in the streets of Jaranwala, Punjab, after allegations of blasphemy were announced against two Christian brothers. Umair Saleem Masih (known as Raja) and Omar Saleem Masih (known as Rocky) were accused of burning pages from the Quran while disposing of garbage. More details on the original allegations, and the resulting violence that took place in the community, are available here

• Blasphemy Charges Dropped Due to False Accusations

  

  A 72-year-old Christian man in Faisalabad was arrested and charged with blasphemy on February 10th after being accused of tearing a copy of the Quran. The case against Younis Bhatti (also known as Bhagat) was filed by Sosan Fatima, a woman who had previously attended the Brethren house church founded by the Bhatti family. Having allegedly converted to Islam, Sosan claimed that she was reading the Quran at her home when Younis forced his way into the house. Purportedly, he then grabbed the Islamic scriptures from her and tore its pages, assaulting her during the incident.

• Couple Released on Bail Due to Lack of Evidence

  

  On September 8th, Kiran Bibi answered the door to a man who said he noticed pages of the Quran apparently falling from the rooftop of her family's home. When she invited him to investigate this further by going up to the rooftop, they found a bag with loose papers in it. Kiran stated that the bag had been given to her by a Muslim employer to sell to a scrap vendor, and that her children may have unintentionally thrown some of the pages down without realizing their significance.

• Christian Boy Beaten for Alleged Blasphemy

  

  A young Christian boy was recently badly beaten by his Muslim schoolteacher after he allegedly committed a blasphemous act in class. The incident, which took place in the Pakistani city of Khanewal, has raised concerns about the lack of religious tolerance and justice in the community.