Pakistani set to die in blasphemy case

MULTAN, Pakistan — A member of the Shiite Muslim minority group was sentenced to death in Pakistan for sharing blasphemous content about Islam on social media, a government prosecutor said.

Judge Shabbir Ahmed announced the sentence for Taimoor Raza, 30, on Saturday in Bahawalpur in eastern Punjab province, Shafiq Qureshi said. Raza was arrested last year over accusations he posted derogatory content about Sunni Muslim religious leaders and the wives of the Prophet Mohammed on Facebook.

Qureshi said Bahawalpur’s counterterrorism force arrested Raza in April last year after a complaint that he was showing onlookers objectionable material on his cellphone at a bus terminal. He added that Raza had previously posted other blasphemous material on Facebook.

Pakistan is a predominantly Sunni Muslim country, and the rivalry between Shiite and Sunni Muslims dates to the seventh century, when the groups had a disagreement over who should be the heir to Islam’s Prophet Mohammed.

Under Pakistan’s harsh blasphemy laws, anyone accused of insulting God, Islam or other religious personalities can be sentenced to death.

Pakistan last year arrested 15 people, 10 Muslims and five non-Muslims, on blasphemy charges, according to a report issued by the independent rights group Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.