Another victim of Pakistan's dangerous blasphemy allegations has died. A teacher at a religious seminary school in Dera Ismail Khan, a city in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was stabbed to death.
Safoora Bibi was killed on Tuesday, March 29, by two students and one of her colleagues. They claimed that a 13-year old child dreamt of Bibi committing blasphemy and wanted Bibi dead.
Allegations of blasphemy in dominantly Muslim countries like Pakistan are a dreadful experience. Despite being unproven, many of the allegations result in injury or, worse, death.
A Muslim imam was stabbed after an altercation that started with the suspect calling the victim a “fucking terrorist.” Sheikh Uthman ibn Farooq said he was followed and confronted by the suspect after his public preaching.
The San Diego-based imam has been performing the “dawah,” or public preaching, since his early 20’s. Farooq has gained popularity among Muslim individuals, including non-Muslims whom he engages on his Youtube channel.
A woman has been accused of stabbing her date in a Nevada hotel room on March 5. According to court documents submitted by the police, the 21-year old Nika Nikoubin wanted revenge for an Iranian leader killed by an American drone strike in 2020.
Nikoubin met the victim online through the Plenty of Fish online dating website.
On Friday, March 4, a Shia mosque in Peshawar, northwestern Pakistan, was attacked by a suicide bomber. The Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack that left at least 63 dead and 196 injured, mostly in critical conditions. The attack happened during a Friday worship service in the Kucha Risaldar mosque, causing massive casualties.
A Mexican Muslim woman who was employed to help organize the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar was forced to leave the country after being sexually assaulted. Paola Schietekat worked in Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy when a colleague sexually assaulted her last June.
A man was killed by a mob in Tulamba in the Khanewal District of Pakistan on February 12. Muhammad Mushtaq, 41-years old, was killed by an angry crowd and his body was left tied to a tree. Reuters reported that Mushtaq “appeared to have had mental disabilities.”
A 17-year old was killed by her husband on February 5, in yet another case of honor killing in Iran. Mona Heydari was beheaded by her husband after being brought back from Turkey. In southwestern Iran, the incident took place in Khuzestan’s capital, Ahvaz.
A 23-year old transwoman from Iraq was killed by her brother on what authorities and advocacy groups are calling a case of honor killing. Doski Azad, a transwoman who came out to her family and left home over five years ago, worked as a makeup artist in Dohuk city center, in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
