A mob tortured and burned a man alive in northwestern Pakistan, after accusing him of desecrating Islam and kidnapping him from a police station where he was being held, local police reported this Friday (21).
The attackers “took the accused to a nearby bridge, where they burned him after severely torturing him,” he told EFE Agency a police officer, Rafi Ullah, posted in the mountainous area of Madyan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
The incident occurred in the Swat Valley, which was under the control of the Pakistani Taliban between 2007 and 2009, until the Army retook the area.
The victim was a tourist from the Pakistani city of Sialkot who, according to the police’s version, was accused of desecrating the Quran by local residents.
Local residents “surrounded him in the market in front of his hotel,” Ullah said, and he was rescued by police as he tried to flee with his belongings. There is no information whether the victim is Christian.
Although the victim was taken in an automobile to the local police station, the crowd size increased due to calls made from the mosques and amplified by loudspeakers.
“The crowd, which was already large, followed the police vehicle and invaded the police station,” added the agent, setting the place on fire during its passage and destroying several police vehicles.
Ullah noted that 11 people were also injured in the incident.
The head of the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Ali Amin Gandapur, demanded a report from the provincial police chief about what happened, and also appealed to the population to remain calm.
Blasphemy is a crime and a highly sensitive issue in Muslim-majority Pakistan, where even unproven accusations can trigger an angry mob, often leading to violence, torture and sometimes lynching.
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