A Christian accused of writing blasphemous content that sparked violent riots in Jaranwala, Pakistan in August 2023 was sentenced to death along with other harsh penalties on Good Friday (April 18).
Ramesh Baghel has become the face of a struggle for securing dignity in death for Christians across Chhattisgarh state, India, as he prepares a new petition to the Supreme Court of India.
Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials took 24-year-old Arsalan Gill of Railway Quarters in Mughalpura, Lahore, into custody on March 17 as he returned home from his work as a sweeper, said his brother Suleman Gill.
Bhatti, an ardent advocate for a diverse, multicultural and multireligious society, was assassinated on March 2, 2011, by Taliban militants outside his mother’s home in the federal capital, Islamabad.
Church leaders and others in Pakistan lauded the producers and cast of a TV drama for risking their lives to broadcast an unprecedented, national media portrayal of the violent injustice resulting from blasphemy laws.
Two Christian converts from Islam who were locked in an Egyptian prison and held for three years without trial have been released, religious rights advocates said.
Police in Pakistan this week arrested a mentally challenged Christian on blasphemy charges despite being aware of his condition, Morning Star News reported.