Pakistan
Beef ban * Witch hunts * Too much Guinness : March’s Religious Freedom Recap
By Brian Pellot — April 1, 2015
An Indian state bans the sale and possession of beef. Tanzanians murder “witches” accused of murdering “magical albinos.” And Ireland nearly outlaws straight marriage, on accident. Who needs April Fools’ Day when reality is this strange?
How Pakistan’s unregulated madrassa system sows division and religious strife
By Naveed Ahmad — December 22, 2014
ISLAMABAD (RNS) Two attempts have been made since Sept. 11, 2001 to regulate the country's seminaries. Both have failed.
#IndiaWithPakistan and #illridewithyou show social media solidarity amid tragedy
By Brian Pellot — December 17, 2014
Attacks in Sydney and Pakistan shocked the world this week. Amid these tragedies we witnessed unexpected solidarity and outpourings of support on social media, hatred being countered by hashtags and the hope of reconciliation.
Fleeing persecution, Christian converts find safe houses in England
By Trevor Grundy — December 12, 2014
CANTERBURY, England (RNS) Christian Concern believes thousands of Muslims are anxious to convert and in need of housing after suffering verbal -- and sometimes physical -- attacks from families, friends and co-workers.
Détente on Christmas * Beard passes * Christ Bless Mississippi: Religious Freedom Recap
By Brian Pellot — December 4, 2014
This month's religious freedom news and views from around the world. Read with caution. Prozac optional.
Malala Yousafzai: Kids ‘should stand up for their rights’
By Kim Hjelmgaard — October 10, 2014
(RNS) The Nobel committee "regards it as an important point for a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for education and against extremism," it said.
Travelblog: Hate speech, the First Amendment and religious sensitivity
By Kevin Eckstrom — August 25, 2014
WASHINGTON (RNS) "Everybody knows what hate speech is," my new Pakistani colleague told me. But do we?
State Dept. should act on Pakistan’s religious freedom violations, watchdog group says
By Brian Pellot — July 30, 2014
(RNS) The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom noted “disappointing omissions” in the State Department’s new international religious freedom report, including the absence of Pakistan on its list of worst offenders.
Pregnant Pakistani woman stoned to death by her family
By Michael Winter — May 28, 2014
(RNS) Every year, hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Pakistani women are killed by their families for actual or imagined adultery or premarital sex. Public stoning is rare, however.
Religious rights watchdog pushes to add Pakistan, Syria to list of worst offenders
By Lauren Markoe — May 22, 2014
WASHINGTON (RNS) Pakistan and Syria have earned their places on the list of the world's worst violators of religious freedom, says a leading religious liberty watchdog.
Muslim clerics resist Pakistan’s efforts to end child marriage
By Naila Inayat — May 16, 2014
LAHORE, Pakistan (RNS) In March, the Council of Islamic Ideology ruled that laws related to the minimum age of marriage were against the teachings of the Quran and that children of any age could get married if they had reached puberty.
Pakistan faces criticism for harsh blasphemy law
By Naveed Ahmad — February 19, 2014
(RNS) The growing misuse of the blasphemy law has riled some Pakistanis and, increasingly, foreign powers.
In Pakistan, valentines are exchanged in secret
By Naila Inayat — February 13, 2014
LAHORE, Pakistan (RNS) In a devout Muslim society where public displays of love are forbidden, the young are increasingly using Valentine's Day as a form of rebellion.
Sunni-Shiite violence soars in Pakistan
By Naveed Ahmad — February 3, 2014
(RNS) Tit-for-tat target killings between Sunnis and Shiites have escalated this past year, with Taliban forces repeatedly targeting Shiite processions and places of worship and Iran-backed Shiite groups retaliating.
2013: The top 14 Muslim news stories of the past year
By Omid Safi — December 30, 2013
2013 was a bloody, difficult, unraveling year for many Muslims around the world. May 2014 be a year that sees the discomforted comforted, the orphans cared for, the hungry fed, the naked clothed, the homeless provided with shelter. May there be a widening of the circle of compassion, may there be a real peace rooted in justice, and above all else, may all of us be participants in making it so.
