ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Police has announced the formation of a “protection unit” to ensure the safety of minority places of worship and communities after a Muslim mob torched several churches and scores of houses after two men were accused of desecrating the Qur’an.
Violence in Jaranwala in the Faisalabad district of Pakistan took place on Wednesday. Residents and community leaders reported to the media that the rampage continued for 10 hours without any intervention from security forces, but police denied the accusations.
Paramilitary troops were deployed in the town on Thursday to aid the police, which said it had filed cases against more than 600 people and arrested over 100 for involvement in the violence.
Islamabad Police announced on the online platform X that “70 Jawans have been posted in a minority protection unit.”
District police officers have been made responsible for the protection of minority places of worship and communities in their areas, and have been instructed to liaise with minority committees at the divisional level. The minority protection unit is to work under the direction of the senior superintendent of the police.
A spokesperson for the government in the Punjab where the violence took place called it a “well thought out plan to disrupt peace.”
The violence has drawn widespread condemnation in Pakistan and beyond, with Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar vowing “stern action.”
Kakar wrote on the X platform: “I am gutted by the visuals coming out of Jaranwala, Faisalabad.”
National and international rights groups also condemned the incidents, calling on Pakistani authorities to take swift action and ensure the protection of minorities.
Amnesty International said in a statement: “The Pakistani authorities must urgently ensure the protection of the minority Christian community in Jaranwala is in accordance with their needs and wishes, and that those found responsible for the arson and attacks on churches and homes are held accountable.”
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said the frequency and scale of the attacks, which were “systematic, violent, and often uncontainable,” appeared to have increased in recent years.
It added: “Not only has the state failed to protect its religious minorities, but it has also allowed the far right to permeate and fester within society and politics.”
Pakistani bishop Azad Marshall, from the neighboring city of Lahore, said the Christian community was “deeply pained and distressed” by the events.
Marshall wrote on X: “We cry out for justice and action from law enforcement and those who dispense justice and (support) the safety of all citizens to intervene immediately and assure us that our lives are valuable in our own homeland.”
Washington has also voiced alarm at the attacks and urged Pakistan to launch an investigation.
Blasphemy is a sensitive issue in Muslim-majority Pakistan, where anyone deemed to have insulted Islam or Islamic figures can face the death penalty.
Christians, who make up around 2 percent of the population, occupy one of the lowest rungs in Pakistani society and are frequently targeted with spurious and unfounded blasphemy allegations that can be used to settle personal vendettas.
