Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lahore (Fides News Agency) - A Christian cemetery was desecrated and several faithful, both men and women, were brutally attacked in Lahore. According to Aneeqa Maria Anthony, a lawyer of the organiztion ‘The Voice Society’, who spoke to Fides and intervened at the scene, the incident occurred on April 18. In addition to the desecration, there was also an attack on young Christians who were visiting their deceased loved ones. Thanks to the intervention of The Voice Society, which is providing legal and medical assistance to the injured, a formal complaint was filed the following day in Lahore against nine men for attempted murder, and vandalism of places of worship.
The attack occurred when a young Christian man, Pervez Masih, intervened to defend several young Christian women who were being insulted and harassed by young Muslim men. Pervez Masih's father is the caretaker of the cemetery, and his family takes care of the Christian cemetery in Asif Town, Lahore. The cemetery is considered a holy place where the city's Christians go daily to honor and pray for their deceased. Adjacent to the cemetery is a church where liturgies, funerals, and prayer services are held. According to testimonies gathered, visitors, especially young women, suffer constant harassment from young Muslims from a nearby neighborhood. On April 18, the situation escalated into mob violence: at least nine individuals stormed the cemetery, vandalized graves and crosses, repeatedly stabbed Pervez Masih, and assaulted Christian women, beating and stripping them.
Volunteers from The Voice Society are fighting to hold the attackers accountable and for the Christian community to obtain justice. The attack, says Anthony, “constitutes a desecration of a sacred place, a religiously motivated hate crime that demands the full application of the law.” Police have arrested four of the accused, while the investigation continues. (PA) (Fides News Agency, 22/4/2026)
The Voice
