Islamic leaders in Pakistan have issued a fatwa, or edict, that declares the killing of religious minorities to be "un-Islamic."
The fatwa issued on September 23 by the influential Sunni Ittehad Council followed a double suicide bombing against a Christian church in Peshawar that killed more than 80 people.
The religious decree says "there no concept in Islam" to kill religious minorities or attack their places of worship.
Islamic figures across Pakistan condemned the attack on the All Saints Church as a "heinous and inhumane act" and called for the perpetrators to be severe punishment for the perpetrators.
They urged the government to take effective measures to protect religious minorities.
Junood ul-Hifsa, a faction of Pakistan's umbrella Taliban movement, claimed responsibility for the church attack on September 22.
Fewer than 2 percent of Pakistan's 180 million people are Christians. They face discrimination, but attacks against them are rare.
The fatwa issued on September 23 by the influential Sunni Ittehad Council followed a double suicide bombing against a Christian church in Peshawar that killed more than 80 people.
The religious decree says "there no concept in Islam" to kill religious minorities or attack their places of worship.
Islamic figures across Pakistan condemned the attack on the All Saints Church as a "heinous and inhumane act" and called for the perpetrators to be severe punishment for the perpetrators.
They urged the government to take effective measures to protect religious minorities.
Junood ul-Hifsa, a faction of Pakistan's umbrella Taliban movement, claimed responsibility for the church attack on September 22.
Fewer than 2 percent of Pakistan's 180 million people are Christians. They face discrimination, but attacks against them are rare.
