Christians in Pakistan

By Karyn Miller-Medzon

Christians in Pakistan are closing their schools for a second day today, in protest of the brutal killings of eight people in Gojra. Witnesses there say that thousands of angry Muslims descended on the town, looting burning buildings, and shooting people, after rumors circulated that a Koran was destroyed during a Christian wedding celebration.

America Abroad Media producer Sean Carberry visited Gojra shortly after the attacks. He describes a disturbing scene — houses were still smoldering, streets were littered with debris, and people were in the streets mourning their dead neighbors.
Townspeople tell him there were masked militants and they were carrying weapons that members of a military or terrorists might have. They felt it was a terrorist attack, incited by local clerics.

The Pakistani government says its investigating whether a Sunni group linked to al-Qaida was involved.

Christians are a small minority in Pakistan. Muslims in Gojra told Carberry relations between the groups have been good in the past.

A local policeman told Carberry he did not shoot a suspect because he worried he would be interrogated. "This is not the law of America, this is the law of Pakistan."