For Immediate Release
Pakistani Christian Kidnapped & Released. Captors Demand U.S. Out of Pakistan

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(9/24/04) The Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC) www.www.persecution.org has just become informed of the case of the kidnapping and torture of Baptist Pastor Yousaf Masih from his home in Jacobabad , Pakistan at 8pm on Sunday, September 12th.
Padre Yousaf, unable to walk properly following an earlier automobile accident, has been harassed for months because of his duties as a Christian pastor. Witnesses report seeing two men who appeared to be fundamentalist Islamic teachers take Yousaf away from his wife and two children. Appeals were initially made to the police to register the case by a church bishop and others but to no avail. The police initially declined to file an FIR (First Incident Report).

Pastor Yousef has since been released after “severe torture.” He was left at the roadside unconscious. Pastor Yousaf reports that he was kidnapped in retaliation for “American killings of Muslims,” and for the U.S. presence at a Pakistani Air Force base. His kidnappers told him to tell “the American military to leave Pakistan , if they don’t-then a lot of Pakistani Christians will be killed.” Pastor Yousef was also under threat from Islamists because many Hindus came to him for prayer, which caused the Islamists to think that he was an Indian agent.

After his release, Pastor Yousef met with the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Din Mohammad Baloch, and the police were again asked to file a FIR. The SSP agreed to file a FIR but refused to file an FIR listing his kidnappers as Muslims, or to record the comments/demands of his captors regarding the U.S. military.

ICC is requesting that concerned individuals and organizations should write to the President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, the Prime Minister, Shaukat Aziz and the Ambassador/High Commissioner of Pakistan to protest these ongoing acts of persecution against Pakistani Christians. We also request that American Christians remember their Pakistani brethren in prayer.

ICC is a Washington-DC based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC delivers humanitarian aid, trains and supports persecuted pastors, raises awareness in the US regarding the problem of persecution, and is an advocate for the persecuted on Capitol Hill and the State Department. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.
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International Christian Concern ● www.www.persecution.org ● Email: [email protected] ● 800-ICC-5441