Pakistan moves bill forward to set the minimum marriage age at 18
The Pakistani Senate has passed a bill to amend the Child Marriage Restraint Bill, 1929, and set the minimum marriage age at 18 years. The bill aims to “curb the menace of child marriage prevalent in the country More...
New Zealand: Christchurch shooter, Brenton Tarrant, officially charged with murder
As the world grieves the horrific terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, police reported that the killer, Brenton Harrison Tarrant, has been charged with the first count of murder. Brenton More...
Open Doors Report highlights persecution against women, Christian sex trafficking, Sharia Law practices
In the latest in-depth report focused on gender persecution, the 2019 Open Doors World Watch List reveals that gender contributes to a large disparity in the methods used for religious persecution. While men experience More...
Pakistani Senate committee passes draft bill increasing minimum marriage age to 18
The Upper House of Pakistan’s Parliament has approved a draft bill raising the minimum marriage age to 18 years. The meeting of the Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights unanimously approved the Child Marriage More...
Pakistan court to review Asia Bibi acquittal on Tuesday
(International Christian Concern) –Pakistan’s Supreme Court has announced that it will hear arguments regarding a petition to review Asia Bibi’s acquittal next Tuesday, January 29. The news has left many Pakistani More...
New data shows nearly 200 Christians in Pakistan face blasphemy charges
(International Christian Concern) –New research by the Catholic Church in Pakistan has found that almost 200 Christians face charges under the country’s notorious blasphemy laws. Those accused face punishments More...
Asia Bibi still trapped in Pakistan, even after acquittal from blasphemy charges
(International Christian Concern) –Asia Bibi, a Christian woman formally on death row in Pakistan, continues to live like a prisoner almost three months after her acquittal by the Supreme Court. Bibi, who continues More...
Pakistan: Christian mother and daughter illegally detained and tortured
Christian cousins Saima and Salma of Chak Jhumra, Faisalabad (Pakistan), and Saima’s mother Kausar Rehana have been illegally detained for thirteen days in Jhumra police station and tortured by the male policemen. Saima More...
Pakistani Christians Fear New Security Mandate may Lead to Church Closures
(International Christian Concern) –On January 2, the government of the Punjab province in Pakistan mandated that churches comply with set security standards by March 31 or faced forcible closure. Pakistani Christians More...
Pakistani Christian Asher Simpson to be deported from UK despite death threats
(International Christian Concern) –A Pakistani Christian seeking asylum in the U.K. is to be forcefully deported back to Pakistan despite claims that his life will be in danger. Asher Sampson, age 41, has lived More...
Pakistan added to State Department’s list of ‘World’s Worst Violators of Religious Freedom’
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomed the State Department’s announcement that it had named 10 “Countries of Particular Concern” (CPCs) for particularly severe religious More...
Pakistan: Christian brothers, Qasir and Amoon, sentenced to death under blasphemy laws after website posts
Pakistani Christian brothers Qasir and Amoon have been sentenced to death after being accused of blasphemy. The court of Mr. Javed Iqbal Bosal Additional Sessions Judge of Talagang District Jhelum. photo Kauhajoki.vaakuna.svg The More...
Human Rights Day: Pakistan should challenge the blasphemy laws, not entrench them
The Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS-UK) is calling upon the Pakistani Government to take steps to end the misuse of the Blasphemy Laws. The Pakistani Government should use Human Rights Day More...
Long Island Woman, Zoobia Shahnaz Pleads Guilty to Providing Support to ISIS
Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, Zoobia Shahnaz pleaded guilty to providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (“ISIS”), which has been More...
Police arrest Khadim Hussain Rizvi, Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan Party leader, heading Asia Bibi protests
(International Christian Concern) –Authorities in Pakistan have arrested the leader of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan Party, Khadim Hussain Rizvi. Rizvi was responsible for organizing the violent and nationwide More...
CLAAS requests prayers for Sawan Masih’s release
Sawan Masih has been on death row since 2014, and his appeal is fixed to be heard on November 27 by the divisional bench before the Lahore High Court. Sawan Masih was accused by his Muslim friend Shahid Imran of More...
Pakistan Christians living in fear as Asia Bibi’s acquittal sparks protests by Muslim extremists
The hardliners’ protests following the supreme court’s verdict to acquit Asia Bibi continue. Many roads of all major cities are closed and barricaded, and police and rangers are patrolling to monitor and control More...
Pakistan: Mentally Disabled Christian, Yaqoob Bashir Sentenced to Life in Prison
(International Christian Concern) –On September 28, Yaqoob Bashir, a 25-year-old mentally disabled Pakistani Christian, was sentenced to life in prison by the Session and District Court of Mirpurkhas for allegedly More...
Nusrat Shaheen, Head Teacher in Pakistan suspended following assault on Christian Student
(International Christian Concern) –Authorities in Pakistan suspended the head teacher of the Government Boys Primary School of District Attock, Punjab Province for assaulting a Christian student and abusing that More...
Christian father, Yousaf Ebran claims Pakistan Police are Covering up his Son’s Murder
(International Christian Concern) –The father of a young Christian in Pakistan claims the murder of his son in police custody is now being covered up. Yousaf Ebran, father of Frahan Ebran, claims his son was tortured More...