Faisalabad attack: Church gate set ablaze

Police arrest three suspects; term incident ‘internal conflict’

FAISALABAD: Unidentified attackers opened fire at a church in Faisalabad and set its main gate ablaze before making their escape in the early hours of Friday.

Saddar police said a group of miscreants riding motorcycles came to a street in Noorpur Mohallah at about 2:00am and set the main gate of a church on fire. They also fired indiscriminately at the church building smashing some windowpanes.

Hearing the gunshots, the area residents and the church priest rushed to the spot but the attackers managed to escape. The people managed to extinguish the fire themselves by throwing water on the gate.



Talking to the media, church cleric Dilawar Masih said the attack had left the Christian community under immense stress. “Though there was no human loss, the attackers gave a clear-cut message that the churches are not safe and can be attacked any time,” he added.

Extra police contingents from Saddar police station were posted at the spot, from where five empty bullets were found.

Police have asked the church administration to file a formal complaint to start formal investigations.

Saddar SHO Malik Jahangir told The Express Tribune that police had detained three suspects allegedly involved in the attack. The suspects were identified by some witnesses of the attack.

“This is not a terrorist act,” he believed. “Initial evidence suggests the incident was an outcome of some internal conflicts among the area residents and has nothing to do with attacks on Christians or sacrilege of churches.”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2015.