LAHORE, Pakistan — A 16-year-old Christian in Pakistan is languishing in jail under a baseless blasphemy charge after a judge declined to grant him bail, his attorney said.
On Feb. 7 a judge denied bail to Nabeel Masih, who has been jailed since Sept. 18, 2016, after a Muslim friend accused him of “sharing” and “liking” on Facebook an allegedly blasphemous photo of the Kaaba, the holiest Islamic site in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Police are suspected of beating Masih until he confessed. He maintains his innocence, according to news sources.
“The case against Nabeel is clearly fabricated, as he is illiterate and does not know how to use social media,” said Riaz Anjum, the teen’s defense attorney. “The Facebook account in his name was made by his Muslim friends and they used (it) to post pictures on the timeline without his consent.”
Police registered the case against Masih when a Muslim friend claimed his religious sentiments had been hurt by an image posted to the Facebook page. The case attracted the attention of local Islamist groups and large mobs have gathered at court hearings.
Pakistan ranked fourth on Christian support organization Open Doors’ 2017 World Watch List, which lists the 50 countries where Christians suffer the most persecution. (MS)
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