Paramilitary troops have thrown a heavy layer of security around a Christian community in eastern Pakistan after a Muslim mob set fire to dozens of homes and churches there after two men were suspected of desecrating the Koran there, according to police and witnesses on Thursday.
Wednesday’s attack in Jaranwala, a part of Faisalabad’s industrial zone, went on for more than ten hours without any police intervention, according to locals and community leaders. Police refuted the claim, claiming that security forces had stopped a worsening of the circumstance.
Christian colony totally destroyed
The two accused men, who had fled their houses, had to be turned up to the rioters, who demanded it.
According to locals, thousands of Muslims were brandishing iron rods, sticks, knives, and daggers while being led by local clerics during the rioting.
Paramilitary personnel were reportedly sent in to assist police in managing the situation, according to a regional government statement.
According to neighbourhood leader Akmal Bhatti, hundreds of Christians fled to a neighbouring neighbourhood. He also mentioned that four pastors had returned to the burning churches.
At least 50 homes, according to him, had been entirely destroyed.
“The miscreants dragged heavy goods from the houses and torched them in the streets and took away small valuables which they could carry easily,” Bhatti told the media.
The head of the provincial government, Mohsi Naqvi, said that it would take three to four days to fully reestablish order in the region and offered to make up for any losses.
“It is the government’s responsibility to compensate for the loss of property of the Christian community,” he told reporters.
The authorities are estimating the losses caused to the victims, Bhatti informed.
Misuse of blasphemy laws
Amnesty International, a human rights organisation, urged Pakistani authorities to guarantee minorities’ protection.
“The vicious mob attacks are just the latest manifestation of the threat of vigilante violence which anyone can face in Pakistan after a blasphemy accusation,” it said in a statement.
According to the government statement, police detained over 100 alleged rioters, and an investigation into the incident has been ordered.
Although no one has ever been hanged for blasphemy in Pakistan, numerous accused individuals have been lynched by incensed mobs. Due to blasphemy claims, a previous regional governor and a minister for minorities were shot and killed.
Blasphemy claims, according to rights organisations, are sometimes made to settle disputes. According to the rights organisations, judges frequently delay cases out of fear of backlash if they are perceived as being too lenient, which results in hundreds of people languishing in prison after being charged with the crime.
