CV NEWS FEED // A Muslim man armed with an axe carried out a brutal attack on two minority Christian women in northeastern Pakistan in late January, prompting calls for increased protection against crimes against women in the region.
A Christian website’s local report of the January 29 attack allege that the attacker, Abdul Raouf Arian, 42, assaulted the two women with an axe and attempted to rape them. Rukhasana Nasir and Asifa Bilal had been relieving themselves in the open sugarcane fields of Chak in the district of Sargodha when Arian began attacking Rukhsana with his axe.
The report claims Asifa heard Rukhsana and attempted to intervene, but was quickly overpowered by Arian. Rukshana was unconscious and covered in blood when the husbands of the two women arrived at the scene.
“The aftermath of the attack left Rukshana with deep wounds requiring 14 stitches on her face and palm,” the report stated, continuing: “Both women, still in pain and affected by the cold weather, struggle to recover from their physical and emotional trauma.”
The report continued:
This incident has not only brought to light the plight of minority communities in Pakistan but also underscored the need for more robust protection and legal recourse for victims of such crimes.
It raises serious questions about the safety of women, particularly in rural areas, and calls for urgent action from authorities to ensure justice and prevent such atrocities in the future.
After initially trying to delay filing of a First Initial Report (FIR), Pastor Nasir Azeem, and several others prevailed upon the local community to officially register the offence on January 30.
Pastor Azeem noted in the report that the two women, who happen to be sisters in law, live in “a predominantly Christian colony amidst a larger Muslim community.”
