Pakistan mob sets fire to police station over alleged Holy Quran desecration 

Car on fire are pictured as demonstrators gather at a police station which was set on fire after thousands of people mobbed it demanding that officers hand over a man accused of burning the Holy Quran, in Charsadda, Pakistan, on November 29, 2021. (AFP)
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Updated 29 November 2021
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Pakistan mob sets fire to police station over alleged Holy Quran desecration 

  • Crowd of up to 5,000 people surrounded police station in Charsadda town on Sunday night
  • On Monday morning, 2,000 people remained outside police station burning uniforms of officers

PESHAWAR: Thousands of people mobbed a Pakistani police station, setting fire to it and nearby checkposts after demanding that officers hand over a man accused of burning the Holy Quran, police said Monday.
The crowd of up to 5,000 people surrounded the police station in Charsadda town in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday night, also setting fire to more than 30 cars.
On Monday morning, around 2,000 people remained outside the police station burning uniforms of officers.
"The mob stormed the police station asking to hand over the man to them so they could burn him alive like he burnt the Holy Quran," district police chief, Asif Bahadur told AFP.




Demonstrators gather at a police station which was set on fire after thousands of people mobbed it demanding that officers hand over a man accused of burning the Holy Quran, in Charsadda, in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on November 29, 2021. (AFP)

The identity and religion of the accused has not been disclosed by police, Bahadur said.
"The motive behind burning the copy of the Holy Quran is still unknown but we are investigating."
Blasphemy is a hugely sensitive issue in Muslim-majority Pakistan, where even unproven allegations can stir mobs and violence.
Rights groups say the legislation is often hijacked for personal vendettas, with minorities largely the target.
A Christian couple was lynched then burnt in a kiln in Punjab in 2014 after being falsely accused of desecrating the Holy Quran. A former Punjab governor Salman Taseer was gunned down by his bodyguard, Mumtaz Qadri, in Islamabad in 2011 over his call for reforms of the blasphemy law.
Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman and a labourer from central Punjab province, was convicted of blasphemy in 2010 and was on death row until her acquittal in 2018, which prompted days of violent demonstrations by hardliners. She and her family later fled the country for Canada.
The country has frequently been paralysed in recent years by anti-blasphemy protests waged by the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan party, often linked to the publishing of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) by a French satirical magazine. 


Pakistan warns of landslides, avalanches in northwest amid snowfall forecast

Updated 22 December 2025
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Pakistan warns of landslides, avalanches in northwest amid snowfall forecast

  • Provincial authority warns snowfall may cause road closures, slippery conditions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts in next 24 hours
  • Disaster management authority urges people to exercise caution, avoid unnecessary traveling during next 24 hours in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

PESHAWAR: Pakistan has warned of landslides and avalanches in the hilly areas of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) in the next 24 hours, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said on Monday, advising the public to remain cautious and avoid unnecessary travel.

In a weather forecast issued by the PDMA KP, the authority warned that snowfall may cause road closure and slippery conditions in the northwestern Naran, Kaghan, Dir, Swat, Buner, Malakand, Kohistan, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Shangla and Galliyat districts in the next 24 hours.

“Possibility of landslides/avalanches in hilly areas of the province during the [24 hours] period,” PDMA said. 

“Travelers and tourists are advised to remain extra cautious and avoid unnecessary travel during the period.”

It also warned of foggy conditions in patches at scattered places over Peshawar, Mardan, Nowshera, Charsadda Swabi and D.I. Khan districts during late nights and early mornings in northwestern Pakistan. 

Pakistan, which contributes less than one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, is recognized among countries that are most vulnerable to climate change.

Scientists say rising temperatures are making South Asia’s monsoon rains more erratic and intense, increasing the risk of flash floods and landslides in mountainous regions such as KP and northern Gilgit-Baltistan.

Authorities in the past have urged people to avoid northern areas or exercise caution in travel when weather conditions are expected to deteriorate in winter season. 

At least 21 people, including nine children, died in freezing temperatures after being stuck in their vehicles in the Pakistani hill station of Murree in January 2022 when the roads became impassable.