Release International

About 250 Christian families have been forced to leave their homes in Punjab – after they dared to challenge the abuse suffered by their women and girls.

The head of the predominantly Muslim village No. 123/10R, Katcha Khoh, ordered the expulsions in apparent retaliation for complaints made by four Christian men against their Muslim neighbours.

The four had dared to protest that Christian women and girls in the village, who mostly worked as domestic servants in Muslim households, were being 'routinely' sexually assaulted, according to Compass Direct news agency. Most Christian men in the village worked as agricultural labourers for Muslim landowners.

Villagers told Compass Direct sources that they had not involved police in the situation for fear of being falsely accused under Pakistan's blasphemy laws.

Their fears are not unfounded. Two Christian men in Gulshan-e-Iqbal town, Karachi, have just been charged with 'desecrating the Koran' – after they complained to police that radical Muslims had been 'looking for pages of the Islamic scripture' in their rubbish bins. The men – Atiq Joseph and Qaiser William – and their wives are now in hiding and in fear of their lives.

(Source: Compass Direct)

• Pray for justice for the Christians of Katcha Khoh. Pray that they will know that God is their refuge and their strength (Psalm 46:1).
• Ask God to keep safe Atiq Joseph, Qaiser William and their wives.

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