Crowd attacks churches, homes in eastern Pakistan over Quran desecration

Police said at least four churches had been set on fire. (Photo/Reuters)

A crowd of protesters has attacked a Christian community in eastern Pakistan, vandalising several churches and setting scores of houses on fire after accusing two of its members of desecrating the Quran, police and community leaders have said.

The attack took place on Wednesday in Jaranwala in the industrial district of Faisalabad, police spokesperson Naveed Ahmad said.

The two Christians were accused of blasphemy, he said, adding they and family members had fled their homes.

Resident Shakil Masih said he heard announcements inciting the mob and then saw crowds heading towards his Christian area.

"I left my home immediately with my family. Several other families did the same," he told Reuters.

The area has been cordoned off as police negotiated with the crowd, provincial police chief Usman Anwar told English Dawn.com online publication.

The police case against the two Christians is that they found pages of the Quran with some derogatory remarks written in red.

Outraged crowds

Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan and though no one has ever been executed for it, numerous accused people have been lynched by outraged crowds.

A former provincial governor and a minister for minorities have also been shot dead because of blasphemy accusations.

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwar ul Haq Kakar called for stern action against those responsible for Wednesday's violence. "I am gutted by the visuals coming out," he said.

Former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif also condemned the Jaranwala incident and urged for government action and interfaith unity against such acts.

Churches, houses burned

Hundreds of people blocked a nearby highway to protest against the alleged desecration of the Quran.

A Christian leader, Akmal Bhatti, said the crowd had "torched" at least five churches and looted valuables from houses that had been abandoned by their owners.

Several social media posts showed some churches, houses and belongings on fire as police stood by.

The mob was made up of thousands of people, mainly from a religious political party called Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP), a government source said.

The TLP, however, denied inciting the violence and said it had worked with police to try to calm things down.

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Source: TRT