As retribution for the Quran burning event in Sweden last week, the Lahore-based ISI-backed Sunni terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) declared on Sunday, July 2 that it would attack Christians and churches in Pakistan.
The group declared that it will also start suicide bombings against Pakistani minorities. It further said that in order to exact revenge for the Quran event that took place in Sweden on Eid, it will join forces with other terror organisations in the area to attack the Christian population.
This development came after the incident in Sweden on June 28, the first day of the Muslim Eid al Adha holidays, when an ex-Muslim tore and burned a Quran outside Stockholm’s major mosque, infuriating Islamic countries
The anti-Quran demonstration was allowed to go ahead with authorisation from the Swedish police. Police, however, charged the perpetrator of the burning with agitation against an ethnic or national group.
LeJ spokesperson Naseer Raisani issued a statement in which he issued the threat that “no Church or a Christian will remain safe in Pakistan.”
ISI-backed Lashkar e Jhangvi vows to attack Christians & Churches in Pakistan to 'avenge' Quran burning in Sweden. pic.twitter.com/aNSFv9UBLg
— Pakistan Untold (@pakistan_untold) July 4, 2023
The terror group is well-known for its ruthless campaign against Shia Muslims in Pakistan since the 1990s. In addition to attacking Shia procession routes and mosques with violence, it also killed famous Shia personalities in targeted attacks.
After the 9/11 attacks by al-Qaeda, the US launched its war on terror with Pakistan as an ally, and it got prominence once more. The LeJ began supporting terrorists against Pakistan to punish it for joining the war on terror. LeJ built its network with nearly all other terror organisations present in the region throughout the 20-year period of instability in the Af-Pak region.
Pakistan has seen a rise in intolerance against minorities in the country in recent years, and the major political parties have been silently supporting this trend. Cases of blasphemy stemming from unfounded accusations of Quran burning, insulting the Prophet, and disrespecting the faith have resulted in the lynching of both domestic and foreign religious minorities.
