Pakistan (MNN) — Several Christians in eastern Pakistan remain under police protection today following a weekend mob attack.
FMI’s Nehemiah says, “This Christian man, Aziz, had a very small shoe factory, and there were Muslims in the same area who didn’t like it. So, they accused this person [of blasphemy], and they become a mob, and they wanted to kill him; they’re trying to stone him to death.”
Piles of shoes and other material burn outside the Christian shop.
(Photo courtesy of FMI)
The mob looted and burned the shoe shop, and it torched the Christian man’s home. The angry mob also attacked the Christian man’s elderly father, accusing him of burning pages of the Quran.
“74-year-old Nazir was transported to the hospital and admitted [into] the intensive care unit [where] he’s being arrested by the police and handcuffed [to] a hospital bed,” Nehemiah says.
In Muslim-majority Pakistan, mobs often use the country’s blasphemy laws as an excuse to attack Christian communities. Last August, radical Muslims burned more than 200 homes and two dozen churches after accusing believers of desecrating the Quran.
Nehemiah says the mob’s intent was crystal clear on Saturday. “This mob wanted to lynch the Christian men. They were armed with sticks and stones; they gathered in front of this house and attempted to break into it,” he says.
“This is a very easy target for any Muslim – to blame Christians and accuse them of blasphemy to set up some private gains.”
Ask the Lord to give FMI church planters safety and wisdom as they share the hope of Christ throughout Pakistan. “You don’t know where you will be attacked or be accused of blasphemy, or a mob will come in and try to kill you,” Nehemiah says, speaking from personal experience.
Connect with FMI here to learn how you can support church planters in Pakistan.
Header and story images courtesy of FMI.
