‘Respect Religious Symbols’: UAE Strongly Condemns Church Attacks By ‘Extremists’ In Pakistan

The United Arab Emirates strongly denounced the burning of a number of churches and dozens of homes in Pakistan by extremists, as well as the accompanying violence, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a press release on Saturday, news ageny ANI reported. According to the press release, the Ministry affirmed the UAE’s permanent rejection of all practises aimed at undermining security and stability in violation of human and moral values and principles, emphasising that hate speech and extremism contradict international efforts to spread the values of tolerance, coexistence, and peace among peoples.

The UAE has strongly condemned the burning of a number of churches and dozens of homes by extremists in Pakistan and denounced the coinciding violence that has taken place: United Arab Emirates, Ministry of Foreign Affairs pic.twitter.com/ZDNwb4uLsJ

— ANI (@ANI) August 19, 2023

Furthermore, the Ministry emphasised the importance of respecting religious symbols and avoiding incitement and polarisation at a time when the international community must work together to reaffirm a commitment to upholding universal principles of tolerance and peaceful coexistence, which should be promoted and implemented in order to achieve stability and long-term development.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) praised the Pakistani government’s efforts and dedication, as well as the mechanisms it put in place to combat these criminal activities, in a statement.

On Wednesday, a crowd marched through a mostly Christian neighbourhood on the outskirts of the industrial city of Faisalabad in response to reports that the Holy Quran had been desecrated.

According to Geo News, who cited the Punjab interim government’s spokesperson, around 100 persons have been detained in connection with the church destruction case.

Meanwhile, Christian leaders said that the police stood by and did nothing. A day after arresting over 100 people in connection with the incident, Jaranwala police in the Faisalabad District claimed on Thursday that they had launched two terror charges against 600 people for ransacking and torching Christian homes and a church building the day before, according to Dawn. 

Several churches were vandalised in Pakistan’s Faisalabad area on Wednesday amid blasphemy claims, according to officials quoted by Pakistan-based Dawn. Furthermore, members of the Christian community were assaulted in their homes.