Hundreds of Christians fled their homes on August 16 when, in the eastern Pakistani district capital of Jaranwala, Muslim mobs started an anti-Christian riot, vandalizing churches and setting churches and Christians’ homes on fire – all based just on an accusation that a Quran had been desecrated.
At least 20 churches throughout the city were set on fire and more than 400 homes belonging to Christians damaged. The rioters attacked and vandalized a Christian cemetery and burned the office of the Christian assistant commissioner of Jaranwala.
The violence began after word spread from calls on mosque minarets that desecrated pages of the Quran had been discovered outside the home of a Christian family. Several thousand enraged Muslims assembled in the city center and began throwing stones at the churches, while others set them on fire. Videos and photos of the violence were shared on social media.
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At least 19 churches were fully burned, 89 Christian homes destroyed – including those of pastors and priests – and 15 homes partially destroyed, according to a report from Human Rights Focus Pakistan (HRFP).
Faraz Pervaiz, a Christian Pakistani asylum-seeker who fled to Thailand after being accused in Pakistan of blasphemy for criticizing political Islam, has been reporting on the riots through his sources on the ground.
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