Pakistan Police Arrest 100 Muslims After Attacking Christians
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
SARGODHA (Worthy News) – Police in eastern Pakistan say they have arrested over 100 Muslim men for attacking and nearly killing a Christian father and son who were accused of desecrating pages of “Islam’s holy book.”
Those detained were allegedly involved in Saturday’s riots in the city of Sargodha in Punjab province, where locals said they saw “burnt pages of the Koran” outside the two Christian men’s house.
In footage obtained by Worthy News, their house and shoemaking factory could be seen on fire.
The victims included 74-year-old Presbyterian Christian Nazeer Gill, who owns the shoe factory, Christians said.
He was reportedly still on a ventilator in critical condition after Islamist neighbors incited a mob to attack him and his son, police and Christians said.
A video sent to Worthy News by a well-informed Christian showed a suffering, bleeding older man sitting on his knees with a deep wound in the back of his head.
People were apparently shouting insults at the man, whose clothing appeared soaked in blood. A mob had gathered and sought to kill him, hitting him with bricks, stones, and sticks, Christians said.
BURNING KORAN
Senior police officer Assad Ijaz Malhi said in a separate statement the mob also attacked his son.
The troubles reportedly began after neighbors claimed one of the men burned Koran pages, but Christians said someone “deliberately threw them into the fire” when he burned waste paper outside the house.
Malhi said police forces rescued the two wounded men and transported them to a hospital.
But at least one Christian told Worthy News that security forces arrived too late. “Initially, the police stood helpless there,” said the Christian who asked not to be identified for security reasons. “It is a very sad incident. All over Pakistan, wherever Christians are living, everyone is afraid,” added the Christian, involved in a school for street children.
However, police countered that they managed to secure the area eventually and that the men were rushed to the hospital, where they were listed as “in stable condition.”
They also “rescued 10 Christians” who had been surrounded by the mob and transported them to a secure location, police officials added.
Gill’s family are among those in hiding for fear of further attacks, with Gill’s nephew Irfan saying, “We can only pray and hope that he survives. It will be nothing short of a miracle for us.”
INCREASING SECURITY
Punjab police pledged to increase security at churches amid mounting concerns among Christians about their security in the mainly Islamic nation.
Police officer Malhi said that the 100 Muslims involved in the latest anti-Christian violence, who were detained in multiple police raids, would be charged under Pakistan’s anti-terrorism legislation. Authorities were “also chasing others” who were allegedly involved in the attack, he stressed.
Police recalled Monday they had received a distress call from Sargodha city informing them that a person in a Christian community had “desecrated” the Koran and a mob besieged his house to harm him and his family.
The district police chief and others reportedly arrived at the Mujahid Colony, where the incident happened.
However, Christians accused the police of being reluctant to intervene. Footage seen by Worthy News showed the crowd confident enough to attack properties while other men carried shoe boxes from the Christian’s shoe factory.
Yet, “the situation was highly volatile, with the mob demanding that the alleged blasphemer be handed over to them to face their wrath,” a police statement explained.
As they tried to intervene, several officers were also wounded while rescuing the accused and his family, police added. Malhi said investigations were ongoing to determine the extent of the damage.
COMPENSATION UNCLEAR
It was not immediately clear when the Christians would receive compensation for the damage and injuries they suffered. The blaze fully incinerated the factory and parts of the house, Worthy News established.
Blasphemy accusations are common in Pakistan, and under the country’s blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting Islam or Islamic religious figures can be sentenced to death.
Several Christians have been languishing for years in prison after being accused of blasphemy.
While no one has yet been executed on such charges, often just an accusation causes riots and incites mobs to violence, lynchings, and even killings, Worthy News learned.
In August last year, mobs burned churches and attacked dozens in the Jaranwala area of Punjab province after Muslim residents claimed they saw Christians tearing out pages from the Koran.
In 2009, six Christians were killed, and dozens of homes were burned down in the district of Gojra in central Punjab, while anti-Christian attacks have also happened elsewhere in the country.
Thousands of Christians have fled Pakistan, with many facing an uncertain future in countries such as Thailand. Advocacy group Open Doors ranks the country 7th on its annual World Watch List of 50 nations, where it says Christians face the most persecution for their faith in Christ.
Christians comprise roughly 1.8 percent of the country’s 252 million people, with many struggling in a nation where Islam is the official professed religion.
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