PAK ARRESTS 40 FOR ATTACK ON CHRISTIANS

Lahore: At least 40 people, including a cleric and religious party leader, have been arrested and another 500 booked in Pakistan on terrorism charges for looting over a dozen houses of Christians and vandalising a church, forcing authorities to deploy paramilitary forces. An angry mob looted several houses belonging to Christians and attempted to torch a church in Sanda area on Sunday after a Christian youth allegedly committed blasphemy. “We have arrested 40 people and booked another 500 under terrorism charges for vandalising a church, damaging public and private property and injuring policemen,” senior police officer Ijaz Shafi told reporters. He said Tariq, a local leader of Shabab- iMilli, a sister organisation of fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami group, had gathered the mob on the call of a cleric to torch the church in Sanda. The cleric allegedly made an announcement that a Christian youth had committed blasphemy and Muslims should protect the honour of the religion. —