Christian Teen Beaten by Mob in Pakistan for Confronting Harassers
A 17-year-old Christian named Ikhlaq Masih was severely beaten on August 16 in Nasrat Colony, a Christian neighborhood in Sheikhupura, Pakistan, after he confronted a group of men who had been harassing girls walking to church. The group, led by the son of an influential local man, returned armed with pistols, iron rods, and motorcycle chains when Masih was alone, attacking him while hurling religious slurs. Masih was hospitalized and later referred to a district hospital given the severity of his injuries.
His father, Saleem Masih, filed a police report following the attack. Christian residents in the area have described a pattern of the same group returning most Sundays to harass women and girls on their way to services, a dynamic advocates say reflects the broader vulnerability of Pakistan's Christian minority, who make up roughly 2 percent of the country's population.
