Police in eastern Pakistan have arrested 129 Muslims after a mob angered by an alleged desecration of a Quran attacked churches and homes of minority Christians, prompting authorities to summon soldiers to restore order.
Local authorities have shut schools and offices and banned rallies for a week to prevent more violence.
The violence drew nationwide condemnation, with caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul-ul-Haq Kakar ordering police to ensure the rioters are arrested.
On Thursday, Rizwan Khan, the regional police chief, said 129 suspects had been arrested and the situation was under control.
Government officials said all of the damaged churches and homes would be restored within a week and those who suffered losses would be compensated.
The rampage started after some local Muslims claimed they had seen a local Christian and his friend tearing out pages from a Quran, throwing them on the ground and writing insulting remarks on other pages.
Police say they are trying to detain the man, who fled into hiding, to determine whether he desecrated Islam's holy book.
Residents return to destroyed homes
The Christians living in the city of Jaranwala in the Faisalabad district quickly moved to safer places as the mob rampaged Wednesday, and there were no casualties in what was one of the country's most destructive attacks on Christians.
They slowly returned home to see the destruction on Thursday.
At least one church was burned, four were damaged and two dozen homes were torched or badly damaged.
"We were sitting at home when suddenly we heard that a mob is coming and it is burning homes and attacking churches," Shazia Amjad said as she wept outside her torched home.
She said the mob burned household items and furniture and some of her possessions were stolen while she was staying with her family in a safer area.
Ms Amjad said the rioters used gasoline to burn homes. Other Christians described similar ordeals and expressed bewilderment.
Azeem Masih wept as he sat outside his burned home on a street where several buildings were burned.
He said some of the rioters brought vehicles to take the Christians' household items after burning their furniture and other belongings.
"Why did they do it to us? We had not done anything wrong," he said.
Christians consoled each other outside their damaged homes, weeping and crying as those who lost their homes wondered where to go and what to do.
Local priest Khalid Mukhtar said he believed most of Jaranwala's 17 churches had been attacked and his own home was damaged.
Delegations of Muslim clerics arrived in Jaranwala to help calm the situation, as troops and police patrolled the area.
The violence drew condemnation from various domestic and international human rights groups.
Amnesty International called for the repeal of Pakistan's blasphemy laws.
Under the country's blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting Islam or Islamic religious figures can be sentenced to death.
While authorities have yet to carry out a death sentence for blasphemy, often just an accusation can cause riots and incite mobs to violence, lynchings and killings.
Domestic and international human rights groups say blasphemy allegations have been used to intimidate religious minorities and settle personal scores.
By AP
Original article link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-18/pakistan-make-arrests-over-mob-attack-on-churches/102745032
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