Pakistan: Government troops attack extremists
Jul 22 2008
Postings >> Pakistan

Government troops have attacked extremists in north-west Pakistan responsible for kidnapping a group of Christians – but churches now fear a backlash.

Within a week of Taliban from North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) snatching 32 Christians from Academy Town in Peshawar, government soldiers had bombed the home of the commander of one outlawed group. Several suspects were also arrested.

Churches now fear that militants may see the bombing as retaliation for the kidnapping – and may seek revenge by attacking Christians again. Local Muslims in Peshawar presume that the government has been pressured to take action by the US government, according to an RI source. Any such presumption is inflammatory in an extremist heartland.

As 7x7 reported on July 8, the Taliban made a public apology for the abduction of 16 of the Christians, who were freed within a matter of hours. But the militant group has yet to release 16 other believers and their Muslim landlord seized in the same raid. The Christians all rented property in a compound which was once an Islamic seminary.

The abducted Christians and their families have now had to resettle in accommodation closer to the centre of Peshawar for their own safety. Federal and local governments have agreed to cede some territory in NWFP to militants who have been given leave to introduce Sharia law in some areas in return for a ceasefire (see 7x7, 24 June 2008). Other groups, such as the Lashkar-e-Islam Mangal Bagh which was bombed by the government last month, have refused to surrender their weapons.

(Sources: Compass News Direct, Sharing Life Ministry Pakistan)

Pray for Christians in the Peshawar area, fearful of extremist reprisals.

Pray especially for the 16 Christians and their landlord still reportedly held by Taliban militants close to the Afghan border.