Another victim of Pakistan's dangerous blasphemy allegations has died. A teacher at a religious seminary school in Dera Ismail Khan, a city in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was stabbed to death.
Safoora Bibi was killed on Tuesday, March 29, by two students and one of her colleagues. They claimed that a 13-year old child dreamt of Bibi committing blasphemy and wanted Bibi dead.
Allegations of blasphemy in dominantly Muslim countries like Pakistan are a dreadful experience. Despite being unproven, many of the allegations result in injury or, worse, death.
On Friday, March 4, a Shia mosque in Peshawar, northwestern Pakistan, was attacked by a suicide bomber. The Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack that left at least 63 dead and 196 injured, mostly in critical conditions. The attack happened during a Friday worship service in the Kucha Risaldar mosque, causing massive casualties.
On Wednesday, February 23, a Shia Muslim was given the death penalty and a fine of almost $3000 (PKR 500,000) for blasphemy charges. Court officials stated that Wasim Abbas, a minority Shia Muslim in Pakistan, has allegedly insulted the Prophet Muhammad.
A Hindu teacher was sentenced for blasphemy on Tuesday, February 8. Nautan Lal, a college teacher in Sindh province, southern Pakistan, received a life sentence.
The order was passed by Judge Murtaza Solangi of the Sindh Province court. The order also included a fine of 50,000 rupees or close to $300.
A man was killed by a mob in Tulamba in the Khanewal District of Pakistan on February 12. Muhammad Mushtaq, 41-years old, was killed by an angry crowd and his body was left tied to a tree. Reuters reported that Mushtaq “appeared to have had mental disabilities.”
Women's rights advocates and activists in Pakistan are distraught over the impending acquittal of a Pakistani man who murdered his sister in July 2016. Muhammed Waseem strangled his sister, Qandeel Baloch, and was sentenced to life imprisonment after confessing to the murder.
On January 18, 2022, a cybercrime court in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, sentenced 26-year-old Aneeqa Ateeq to 20 years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 200,000 ($1,132 USD), as well as death by hanging.
On December 22, 2021, 14-year-old Arzoo Fatima, a girl who was kidnapped and forcibly married to a 44-year-old Muslim man, has agreed to return to her parents after being away from them for over a year. The agreement carries the condition that she is allowed to continue to practice Islam while being raised by her Catholic parents.
On Friday, December 3, a violent mob attacked, killed, and burned the body of Priyantha Kumara, a Sri Lankan working as a manager in Pakistan. Police said Kumara was accused of committing blasphemous acts against the Prophet Muhammad. The incident happened in the Sialkot district in Punjab, Pakistan.
On Monday, November 29, a mob of violent Muslim protesters burned a police station, including four police posts in Peshawar, northeast Pakistan. Police officers repelled the mob's attempt to take a mentally unstable man accused of desecrating the Quran.
