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Pakistan

• Call to Expel All Christians

  

  A video from a Muslim cleric has gone viral in Pakistan, promoting hatred towards Christians and demanding that all of them be thrown out of the country. Referring to the followers of Jesus as "the worst infidels of the universe," the cleric speaking in the video declares that "Christians have no right to live in this Islamic country."

• Pregnant Teen Confined to a Single Room

  

  In October 2019, 14-year-old Huma Younus was kidnapped from her home, forcibly converted to Islam, and then married to her kidnapper (read more). Since the abduction, her parents have been working on her behalf, seeking to annul the marriage, which by law is forbidden before the age of 18 without parental permission.

• Family Discord and Blasphemy

   

  

  A Christian man has been accused by two close family members of committing blasphemy in what appears to be the first case of its kind in Pakistan. Anwar Masih was arrested on June 2nd and charged under Pakistan's blasphemy law 295-C. Both his wife and daughter are the ones accusing him of speaking against Islam.

• Shot for Buying a House in a Muslim Area

  

  Two members of a Christian family were shot and wounded after buying a house in a Muslim neighbourhood. Nadeem Joseph purchased a house in Peshawar's TV Colony and moved in with his family in late May. However, when a neighbour named Salman Khan found out they were Christians, he told them they must leave immediately, claiming Christians are enemies of Islam.

• Church Building Attacked Over Land Dispute

  

  On May 9th, a group of Muslim men vandalized the Trinity Pentecostal Church in the town of Kala Shah Kaku over an alleged land dispute. The group was led by Malik Aun Abbas, a local property dealer who claims he has rights to the land. The men demolished the main gate and boundary wall. They then entered the church, broke the cross, damaged a wall, and threatened to burn the building and the Christians who were present. Police were called to the scene but the men escaped before the authorities arrived.

• Pastor Arrested on Fabricated Charges

  

  Sarfaraz Raja is the associate pastor of the Youngsen Memorial Church in the village of Youngsenabad, Punjab. He was preparing to deliver his Good Friday sermon on April 10th when his brother phoned, reporting that police had entered their family's house and were harassing their mother and other family members. Accompanied by the head of the village, Pastor Sarfaraz rushed to the scene, where he found six police officers in the courtyard of the family home.

• Hearing Delayed for Huma Younus

  

  The concerned parents of Huma Younus, a teenage girl who was forced into marrying a Muslim man, have expressed anger after yet another delay of legal proceedings in their attempts to annul the marriage. Huma, 14, was abducted from her home on October 10th and taken 600 kilometres away where she "converted" to Islam and married her kidnapper (read more). While forcible marriage is not illegal in Pakistan, the Child Marriage Restraint Act does require permission from the guardian(s) if the person is under 18 years of age.

• Worker Tortured to Death

  

  After a hard day's work in the fields on February 25th, Saleem Masih went to the well to rinse off. The Muslim landowner, however, was furious and accused him of polluting the water. Sher Dogar insulted Saleem, referring to him as a filthy Christian, and vowed to teach him a lesson.

• Court Validates Forced Conversion Marriage

  

  On October 10th, 2019, a 14-year-old Christian girl named Huma Younus was kidnapped from her family's home in Zia Colony, Karachi. A few days later, her family received official conversion papers and a certificate of marriage to her kidnapper, Abdul Jabbar.

• Interview with Asia Bibi

  

  "I, Asia Bibi, daughter of Salamat Masih, believe in Jesus." So begins a video testimony of the Pakistani woman who was formerly sentenced to death for blasphemy but now living in an undisclosed location in Canada. Grateful for the opportunity to begin building a new life for her reunited family, Asia is calling out to the world to remember others still being imprisoned for their faith.

  In the video, Asia, who remains a proud Pakistani, expresses remorse for having to leave her homeland and beloved elderly father. Even while in Canada, however, her life is still under threat by those seeking to punish her for alleged blasphemy.