The United States has expressed concern over the church burning incidents in Jaranwala on Wednesday.
In his press briefing of August 16, Vedant Patel, the principal deputy spokesperson of the US State Department, said the US was concerned over the incident.
The US speaks about the right to peaceful freedom of speech and the right to freedom of religion and belief for everyone.
He hoped the Pakistani authorities fully investigate the incident, and urged the people of Pakistan to remain peaceful.
“So we are deeply concerned that churches and homes were targeted in response to reported Quran dese cration in Pakistan. We support peaceful freedom of expression and the right to freedom of religion and belief for everybody,” Mr Patel said.
He further remarked that the US has previously said it is always concerned about incidents of religiously motivated violence.
“Violence or the threat of violence is never an acceptable form of expression, and we urge Pakistani authorities to conduct a full investigation into these allegations and call for calm for all of those involved,” he concluded his remarks.
On Wednesday, the political leadership and civil society representatives condemned the burning of churches in Jaranwala tehsil of Faisalabad, as an enraged mob vandalized the worship places over alleged blasphemy allegations.—INP
