<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>Hundreds of Muslims in eastern Pakistan went on a rampage over allegations that a Christian man had desecrated the pages of Islam’s holy book, ransacking and burning his house and beating him before police officers rescued the man and his father, officials said.</b></span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The incident occurred Saturday in the Mujahid Colony residential area in Sargodha, a city in Punjab province, said district police chief Ijaz Malhi. He said police quickly responded and saved the lives of the two men.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Malhi said the situation was under control and officers were investigating the allegations.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The incident brought back memories of one of the worst attacks on Christians in Pakistan in August 2023, when angry mobs burned churches and attacked dozens in Jaranwala, a district in Punjab province.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Muslim residents claimed they saw a Christian and his friend tearing out pages from a Qur’an and throwing them on the ground. No one was killed. In 2009, six Christians were killed and some 60 homes burned down in the district of Gojra in Punjab following allegations of insults to Islam.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Malhi said police on Saturday dispersed the crowds and were also seeking help from religious scholars to defuse tensions. The Punjab government condemned the attack.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The man’s small shoemaking factory was also burned down, Malhi said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Blasphemy accusations are common in Pakistan.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Under the country’s blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting Islam or Islamic religious figures can be sentenced to death. While no one has been executed for blasphemy, often just an accusation can cause riots and incite mobs to violence, lynching and killings. - AP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd/fas</div>