Lynching of Muhammad Waris

{{Short description|2023 killing of blasphemy suspect in Pakistan}}

{{infobox civilian attack

|title=Lynching of Muhammad Waris

|location=Nankana Sahib District, Pakistan

|date={{start date and age|2023|2|11|df=y}}

|target=Muhammad Waris

|type=Lynching

|fatalities=1

|victim=Muhammad Waris

|motive=Suspicion of blasphemy

}}

On 11 February 2023, blasphemy suspect Waris was lynched in Nankana Sahib District, Pakistan.{{Cite web |last=Dogar |first=Babar |date=13 February 2023 |title=Pakistan nabs 50 men in weekend killing of blasphemy suspect |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/ap-pakistan-lahore-police-islam-b2281046.html |access-date= |website=The Independent}}

Background

{{main|Blasphemy in Pakistan|Capital punishment in Pakistan|List of blasphemy cases in Pakistan}}

Blasphemy is a very serious crime in Pakistan, for which the maximum penalty is death. Pakistan has sentenced people convicted of blasphemy to death, although it has not executed any of them. Some people who were accused of blasphemy have been lynched, including Priyantha Kumara in Sialkot, Punjab, in 2021 and Mushtaq Ahmed in Tulamba, Punjab, in 2022. International and national human rights groups say that blasphemy accusations have often been used to intimidate religious minorities. In 2021, a mob burned down Mandani police station in Tangi Tehsil, Charsadda District, Peshawar Division, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, intending to kill a blasphemy suspect who was being held there.{{Cite web |date=29 November 2021 |title=Mob attacks Pakistan police, fails to grab blasphemy suspect |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/pakistan-muslim-peshawar-islam-islamabad-b1965969.html |website=The Independent |agency=Associated Press}}

Lynching

In 2019, a man named Waris was arrested for blasphemy. He remained in prison until mid-2022. On 11 February 2023 he was accused of desecrating a copy of the Quran. Some people reacted by attacking him. The police arrested Waris in Nankana Sahib District in Lahore Division, Punjab, and took him to Warburton police station. Later that day, a mob of hundreds stormed the police station and killed him, saying that they were punishing him for insulting the Quran.

References

Category:2023 in Punjab, Pakistan

Category:2023 murders in Pakistan

Category:2020s crimes in Punjab, Pakistan

Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in Punjab, Pakistan

Category:Blasphemy

Category:February 2023 crimes in Asia

Category:February 2023 in Pakistan

Category:Lynching deaths in Pakistan

Category:Murder in Punjab, Pakistan

Category:Nankana Sahib District