In Pakistan, more than 140 people were arrested and over 6,000 police and paramilitary troops were deployed in the eastern city Jaranwala in Punjab province, after a group of Muslims torched churches and vandalized homes and businesses in a violent spree that has left the minority Christian community reeling. The violence was reportedly retaliation for the desecration of a Qur’an by two Christian men. This is a Jaranwala man whose house was destroyed.

Saleem Qasim Masih: “When I saw my house, I felt a jolt in my heart, and I thought I was going to fall. I immediately came out of my house and sat down. We have not committed any crime. All this is a grave injustice toward us.”

The head of the provincial government, Mohsin Naqvi, vowed to compensate and restore victims for their losses. Meanwhile, Muslim faith leaders joined their Christian counterparts in calling for accountability and protection for vulnerable minorities. This is Muslim cleric Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi.

Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi: “Mr. Chief Justice of Pakistan, the nation demands that you establish a court right by the church where the holy cross was vandalized and that you conduct a trial and reach a verdict within a month. The nation wants the culprits to be punished.”