by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – As Christians in Punjab Province, Pakistan, continue to face intense violent persecution from Islamic extremists, a Christian father of three was arrested on November 3 and jailed pending trial for blasphemy, Morning Star News reports.
Zafar Iqbal Ward of No. 12 of Kahna in Lahore, Punjab Province, was arrested after three local Muslims accused him of setting fire to pages of the Quran near his house. Iqbal is the most recent in an extending line of Christians who have been arrested for allegedly defacing Quranic pages.
Iqbal has been charged under Section 295-B of Pakistan’s anti-blasphemy law, which carries a life sentence for defacing the Quran.
Pakistani rights activist Napolean Qayyum told MSN: “Iqbal is now in prison on judicial remand, while his family has gone into hiding and are inaccessible.”
In a website statement about the situation facing Pakistani Christians, the Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization reports: “Pakistan’s notorious blasphemy laws are often used to target minority groups, but Christians are disproportionately affected. Indeed, roughly a quarter of all blasphemy accusations target Christians, who only make up 1.8% of the population.”
Ruled by an Islamic government that promotes harsh blasphemy laws, Pakistan ranks seventh on the Open Doors World Watch List 2024 of the top 50 countries where Christians are persecuted.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
The American military continues to ramp up its attacks on Iran, 10 days into Operation Epic Fury.
Australia has granted humanitarian visas to five Iranian women’s soccer players who sought asylum amid fears for their safety if they returned to the Islamic Republic, authorities confirmed.
NATO-linked air defenses intercepted a second Iranian ballistic missile threatening alliance member Turkey on Monday as the United States and Israel rejected Iran’s newly appointed supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, amid escalating tensions across the Middle East.
A political standoff is brewing in Washington after President Donald Trump vowed not to sign new legislation until Congress passes the SAVE America Act, prompting warnings from Senate leaders that the move could trigger legislative gridlock.
An international law-enforcement operation has led to the arrest of 60 suspects and the rescue of 65 child victims following a year-long investigation across Central America, North America, and the Caribbean.
President Donald Trump unveiled a sweeping new strategy to combat drug cartels across the Western Hemisphere, declaring that powerful trafficking networks should be treated as national security threats rather than ordinary criminal organizations.
Israel’s military says it has struck more than 600 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon and eliminated roughly 200 terrorists since the Iranian-backed group joined the regional conflict last week.