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Pakistani authorities to compensate Christians whose homes/churches were destroyed by Muslim rioters

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – Pakistani government officials announced Monday that Christians whose homes were destroyed by Muslim rioters last week will receive compensation of 2 million rupees ($6,800), DW reports. The announcement is a rare act of consideration toward Christians by Pakistani authorities.

The decision to provide compensation followed a riot which took place on Wednesday August 16, in which a Muslim mob of more than 160 people attacked Christian neighborhoods in Punjab Province, burning at least 16 churches and setting fire homes, DW reports. Hundreds of Christians were afraid to return to burned buildings for fear they would collapse.

In a social media statement announcing the compensation, senior official Punjab Mohsin Naqvi added that repair work had begun on the churches, and that the compensation would be issued within 48 hours.

Christians make up just over 1 percent of the population in overwhelmingly Muslim Pakistan, numbering 2.6 million people, DW reports. They are the largest minority population in the country after Hindus.

“The highest numbers of Christians live in Punjab Province, which consequently sees higher incidents of discrimination and intolerance,” the US Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization reports in a website statement.

Islamic-ruled Pakistan ranks 7th on the US Open Doors World Watch List 2023 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted.