I haven’t had much to say about the murders committed by the Afghans angered by the Terry Jones Koran-burning. But as readers might imagine, I refuse to blame Terry Jones for the crimes, even in part. (I blame him for his largely pointless, non-substantive rudeness — as opposed to fair and substantive criticism of Islam, […]
Archive | Blasphemy
More on the Burnings of Churches in Ethiopia (Triggered by Allegations of Desecration of a Koran)
The Voice of America reports further developments and more details related to the story I noted yesterday: Police in Ethiopia have arrested 130 people described as religious extremists in connection with a series of church burnings in a Muslim-majority area…. Ethiopian government spokesman Shimelis Kemal told VOA two Christians had been killed in the incidents. […]
At Least Two “Houses Used for Worship” Burned in Ethiopia Following Alleged Koran Desecration
ChristianNewsToday reports that there were many more attacks — “At least one Christian was killed and others injured when thousands of Islamic extremists set fire to 59 churches and at least 28 homes in western Ethiopia in the past five days, Christian leaders said,” with “More than 4,000 Christians … displaced as a result of […]
Pakistan Cabinet Member Murdered Over Opposition to Blasphemy Law
CNN reports: A Pakistani government minister who had said he was getting death threats because of his opposition to a controversial blasphemy law was shot to death Wednesday. Shahbaz Bhatti was the only Christian member of the Cabinet in Pakistan, where 95 percent of people are Muslim. He served as the government’s minister of minority […]
Blasphemy Conviction in Austria
Nina Shea (The Corner) reports: Today, Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff, a young Viennese mother, was convicted under section 283 of the Austrian penal code of vilifying religious teachings for her negative commentary on Islam in a lecture before a political-party gathering in Vienna; she was fined 480 Euros. Sabaditsch-Wolff, a diplomat’s daughter, had lived and worked for […]
“A Muslim Mob Burned Churches … as [Mob Members] Demanded the Death Penalty for a Christian Man Convicted of Blaspheming Against Islam”
Agence France Press reports: A Muslim mob burned churches and clashed with police in Indonesia on Tuesday as they demanded the death penalty for a Christian man convicted of blaspheming against Islam, police said. Two days after a Muslim lynch mob killed three members of a minority Islamic sect [the Ahmadiyahs], crowds of furious Muslims […]
We Can’t Say What Blasphemy the Arrestee Committed — That Would Itself Be Blasphemous
The Independent (UK) reports on a story from Pakistan: [A 17-year-old] schoolboy … was arrested and imprisoned for writing alleged blasphemous remarks about the Prophet Muhammad on an exam paper…. It is unclear what Mr Samiullah may have written. When the police were asked about his alleged offence, they declined to elaborate, suggesting that it […]
“Two Christian Women Were Beaten and Publicly Humiliated by an Angry Mob in Pakistan Over Apparently Frivolous Blasphemy Allegations”
“[S]ubsequently, the duo, along with the family, has gone in hiding over fears of being killed.” So reports Karachi News.Net, and adds: According to the family, the blasphemy allegations stemmed from a dispute between a Muslim woman and her sister-in-law, who is a Christian, in an East Lahore locality. A day after the two got […]
Assign Supposedly Blasphemous Paper to Your Students — Get Your Hand Chopped Off
The Press Trust of India reports: The police has filed a chargesheet against 27 accused in the brutal attack on Professor T. J. Joseph, a private college lecturer in Kerala. His right hand had been chopped off allegedly by [Muslim radical] activists of the … Popular Front of India (PFI) on July 4, 2010 … […]
Life Imprisonment in Pakistan for Muslim-vs.-Muslim Blasphemy
Agence France Press reports: Mohammad Shafi, 45, [an imam at a local mosque,] and his son Mohammad Aslam, 20, were arrested in April last year for removing a poster outside their grocery shop advertising an Islamic event in a nearby village which allegedly contained Koranic verses [and were sentenced to life in prison on Monday]…. […]
Support in Pakistan for Murderer of the Pakistani Governor Who Had Opposed Blasphemy Punishment
I noted Tuesday, quoting the Washington Post that Salman Tasser, governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, “was assassinated … allegedly by one of his own security guards [who told the police] he was angered by Taseer’s recent public endorsement of a pardon for a Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy. Prof. Howard Friedman (Religion Clause) […]
Pakistani Governor Assassinated By Own Security Guard, Allegedly Because of Governor’s Opposition to Blasphemy Punishment
The Washington Post reports: The governor of Pakistan’s largest province was assassinated Tuesday at a genteel market in the nation’s capital — allegedly by one of his own security guards …. Interior Minister Rehman Malik said one of the governor’s guards surrendered to police after the shooting and told them he was angered by Taseer’s […]
Arrests in Plot to Murder People at Danish Newspaper That Published the Mohammed Cartoons
The New York Times reports: A group of men arrested in Denmark on Wednesday were about to mount a “Mumbai style” attack on the Danish newspaper that ignited Muslim fury around the world by publishing satirical cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in 2005, the head of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service said…. Prime Minister […]
Blasphemy Prosecution in England
From the Guardian (UK): A 15-year-old girl has been arrested in the West Midlands on suspicion of inciting religious hatred after allegedly burning an English-language version of the Qur’an — and then posting video footage of the act on Facebook…. The incident comes just two and a half months after six people were arrested after […]
Death Sentence for Blasphemy in Pakistan
By Eugene Volokh on November 12, 2010 3:07 pm in Blasphemy, Freedom of Speech, Religion and the Law, Religious Freedom
The Herald-Sun (Australia) reports: A Pakistani court has sentenced to death a Christian mother-of-five for blasphemy …. Pakistan has yet to execute anyone for blasphemy, but the case spotlights the Muslim country’s controversial laws on the subject … Asia’s case dates back to June 2009 when she was asked to fetch water while out working […]