Pakistan: Christian murdered after row over religion

A 45-year-old Christian was reportedly shot dead in Pakistan following a heated argument with a local Muslim over religion.

Fides news agency reports that Roshan Masih rowed with Sohail Akhtar just days before the incident last Saturday in Lahore, Punjab Province.

It is feared that Masih's defence of the Christian faith was taken to be blasphemous and prompted the killing.

The Legal Evangelical Association Development (LEAD) reported the murder to local police, naming Akhtar as the perpetrator.

Akhtar was subsequently arrested and detained by local police, who have launched an investigation.

Sardar Mushtaq Gill, of LEAD, told Fides: "This is truly a tragedy. An innocent man is slain for defending his faith in a simple argument.

"The episode is emblematic of the conditions of Pakistani Christians.

"The authorities have a duty to guarantee the basic rights of Christian minorities."

News
Fire severely damages historic Amsterdam church on New Year’s Day
Fire severely damages historic Amsterdam church on New Year’s Day

A major fire tore through one of Amsterdam’s best-known historic buildings in the early hours of New Year’s Day, seriously damaging the property and forcing people to leave nearby homes.

Rwanda’s president on the defensive over church closures
Rwanda’s president on the defensive over church closures

Rwandan President Paul Kagame defended the government's forced closure of Evangelical churches, accusing them of being a “den of bandits” led by deceptive relics of colonialism. 

We are the story still being written
We are the story still being written

The story of Christ continues in the lives of those who take up His calling.

Christians harassed, attacked all over India at Christmas
Christians harassed, attacked all over India at Christmas

International Christian Concern reported more than 80 incidents in India, some of them violent, over Christmas.