Authorities in Pakistan have launched a probe and arrested no less than 146 individuals within the Punjab province a day after a Muslim mob torched 5 church buildings and attacked dozens of homes belonging to the native Christian group over claims of blasphemy, the province’s prime police official has informed Al Jazeera.

“We are continuing our operations to detain others involved,” Inspector General of Punjab Police Usman Anwar mentioned on Thursday, a day after lots of of individuals went on a rampage attacking Christian properties and locations of worship in Jaranwala metropolis in Faisalabad district – about 115 kilometres (71 miles) southwest of the provincial capital, Lahore.

Local reviews mentioned torn pages of the Quran, with alleged blasphemous content material written on them, had been found close to Jaranwala’s Isa Nagri (Christian colony) space, triggering one of many worst spells of violence towards the minority group in recent times.

The Salvation Army Church in Jaranwala was among the many 5 church buildings vandalised. Videos on social media confirmed a handful of males on the roof of the church, the most important within the metropolis, attacking its entrance facade and making an attempt to dislodge the cross on prime. Some of the purported movies on X confirmed police officers standing amid the group of onlookers because the attackers continued vandalising the church buildings.

Houses, companies and graveyards belonging to the Christian group had been additionally focused as violence gripped town of 230,000.

Thousands of further police and paramilitary troops have been deployed to regulate the violence within the South Asian nation, which has been dealing with an unprecedented political and financial disaster.

Punjab’s Information Minister Amir Mir claimed that an preliminary investigation into the alleged desecration of the Quran revealed the incident was a “well thought-out conspiracy to inflame public sentiments”. He didn’t elaborate on his claims.

“Security of the churches has been tightened and a large number of security personnel have been deployed,” Mir mentioned in a sequence of posts on X, the social platform previously often known as Twitter.

Farooq Masih, a truck artist who lives subsequent to one of many church buildings in Jaranwala, mentioned he was shaken by the violence.

“My entire house is completely torched, there is nothing left there that could be salvaged. I don’t even have a chair to sit on. Everything has turned to ashes,” Masih, 47, informed Al Jazeera.

“I live in this house with my three brothers, and we have a total of 19 members in this house. I don’t have any idea what are we going to do now, all we have is just faith in God.”

Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar condemned the violence and known as for motion towards these concerned within the assaults.

“I am gutted by the visuals coming out of Jaranwala, Faisalabad. Stern action would be taken against those who violate law and target minorities,” mentioned Kakar in a put up on X.

Calls to repeal blasphemy regulation

The United States mentioned it was “deeply concerned” concerning the violent incident and urged Pakistan to research the assault.

“We are deeply concerned that churches and homes were targeted in response to reported Quran desecration in Pakistan,” State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel mentioned throughout his press briefing.

Several native and worldwide rights organisations additionally spoke out towards the violence. “There is no space in Islam for violence,” Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi, the Chairman of the All Pakistan Ulema Council, posted on X.

Pakistan Ulema Council condemns brutal act of setting church buildings on fireplace in Jaranwala.Pakistan just isn’t a lawless nation & nobody can take regulation into their palms,regardless of the urgency.Culprits of this heinous crime shld be apprehended & punished.There is not any house in Islam for violence

— TahirMahmoodAshrafi حافظ محمد طاهراشرفى (@TahirAshrafi) August 16, 2023

Rehab Mahamoor, the South Asia researcher for Amnesty International, known as on authorities to “urgently ensure the protection of the minority Christian community in Jaranwala is in accordance to their needs and wishes”.

Rabiya Javeri Agha, the chairperson of Pakistan’s National Commission for Human Rights, mentioned the incident was “not an isolated one” and “attacks against minorities and vulnerable groups have been happening repeatedly with impunity”.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan mentioned the state had “failed to protect its religious minorities” and “allowed the far right to permeate and fester within society and politics”.

Blasphemy stays probably the most delicate subjects in Pakistan, the place even mere allegations of committing the crime can set off violence.

International and native rights teams have mentioned that accusations of blasphemy are sometimes wielded to settle private scores, with Pakistan’s minorities typically bearing the brunt.

“The existence of blasphemy laws continue[s] to embolden groups and individuals who threaten, attack or attempt to kill the accused, or anyone connected, including members of their community,” Amnesty’s Mahamoor mentioned in a press release.

She known as on authorities to repeal the regulation and put in place “effective safeguards” towards its abuse.

Pakistan: Authorities should guarantee safety of minority Christian grouphttps://t.co/HT6CGG0bWx

— Amnesty International South Asia, Regional Office (@amnestysasia) August 17, 2023

Number of blasphemy instances rising

Use of the blasphemy regulation remained uncommon within the a long time following Pakistan’s independence from British colonial rule, with simply 10 judgments referring to offences towards faith reported till 1977, in line with a report by the International Commission of Jurists.

In 1974, nonetheless, then-Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s authorities oversaw the introduction of a constitutional modification that declared members of the Ahmadiyya sect “non-Muslim”.

Between 1980 and 1986, the navy authorities of General Muhammad Zia ul-Haq additional strengthened the legal guidelines, including 5 new clauses, all particular to Islam and criminalising offences corresponding to defiling the Holy Quran, insulting Islam’s prophet or utilizing “derogatory” language towards sure non secular figures.

During ul-Haq’s rule, from 1978-1988, the variety of instances skyrocketed, with greater than 80 blasphemy instances filed in that interval, in line with the Center for Research and Security Studies, an Islamabad-based assume tank.

That development continued by way of the Nineties, particularly after a controversial increased Islamic court docket resolution in 1991 that made the imposition of the dying penalty necessary for the crime of insulting Islam’s prophet.

Between 2011 and 2015, the most recent interval for which consolidated information is accessible, there have been greater than 1,296 blasphemy instances filed in Pakistan.