The United States has demanded action over the killing of a U.S. citizen in a Pakistani court this week as he faced blasphemy charges.
The State Department said in a statement on July 30 that the man, Tahir Nasim, was a U.S. citizen and it had urged Islamabad to protect him. The statement said Nasim had been lured from his home in Illinois by individuals who then used Pakistan’s blasphemy laws to entrap him.
“We are shocked, saddened, and outraged that American citizen Tahir Naseem was killed yesterday inside a Pakistani courtroom,” the statement said, using an alternative spelling of his name.
Nasim was shot dead on July 29 in a courtroom in the northwestern city of Peshawar amid tight security.
The U.S. government had called the attention of senior Pakistani officials to his case since his detention in 2018 aiming to “prevent the type of shameful tragedy that eventually occurred,” the statement said.
The statement also urged Pakistan to immediately reform its blasphemy laws, saying they are often abused, and its court system, saying it has allowed such abuses to occur. It called for the suspect to be prosecuted "to the full extent of the law."
It was not clear how the suspect, identified as Khalid Khan, managed to gain access to the courtroom.
He told police the Prophet Muhammad had ordered him to kill Nasim because he had belonged to the Ahmadi faith.
Ahmadis, a 4-million-strong minority group in Pakistan, have faced death, threats, intimidation, and a sustained hate campaign for decades.
Ahmadis insist they follow Islam. However, Pakistan declared the group non-Muslim in 1974 for regarding their sect's founder, Ghulam Ahmad, as a prophet. Orthodox Islam holds there can be no prophets after Muhammad.
Nasim was arrested two years ago on blasphemy charges after claiming he was Islam’s prophet.
Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy law carries an automatic death penalty for anyone found guilty of insulting God, Islam, or other religious figures.
While authorities have yet to carry out a death sentence for blasphemy, even the mere accusation can cause riots.
U.S. Says Man Killed In Pakistan After Blasphemy Charge Was U.S. Citizen, Demands Action
- By RFE/RL
Editor's Picks
Subscribe
Afghanistan/Pakistan Trending
1
Rising Violence Threatens Chinese-Funded Projects In South And Central Asia
2Taliban Orders Further Restrictions On Medical Education For Women -- Sources
3After Decades Of Mistrust, Iran And Pakistan Join Forces Against Militancy
4What Is Behind The Deadly Sectarian Violence In Pakistan?
5Violence Against Women, A Crime That Transcends Borders
6Freight Train Arrives In Afghanistan From China As Beijing Looks To Increase Ties
7Afghan Taliban Minister Killed In Kabul Blast
8Taliban's Ban On Organ Transplants Deprives Afghans Of Lifesaving Treatment
9Pakistan's Push For Digital Control Adds To 'Climate Of Fear'
10'Our Children Are Dying': The Toll Of Sectarian Violence In A Pakistani City
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.
To find out more, click here.
