PESHAWAR: Gunmen killed a Christian cleric and wounded his colleague as they were driving home from a church in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar on Sunday, police said.
Pastor William Siraj died instantly in the ambush, church authorities said.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the shooting in a city where a twin suicide bombing killed scores of people outside a church in 2013 — one of the deadliest attacks on the country’s Christian minority.
Azad Marshall, the most senior bishop in the protestant Church of Pakistan, condemned the attack and tweeted: “We demand justice and protection of Christians from the Government of Pakistan.”
Pakistan’s northwestern areas bordering Afghanistan have seen a rise in militant attacks on security forces in recent days, most of them claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a separate group from the Afghan Taliban.
The attackers opened fire on the car carrying Pastor Siraj and Rev Patrick Naeem in the city’s Chamkani area, church officials said.
Naeem was out of danger and being treated, a spokesman for the city’s Lady Reading hospital said.
Bishop Azad said both were clergy of the Diocese of Peshawar in the Church of Pakistan, which is a union of protestant churches including the Methodists and the Anglicans.
Gunmen kill priest on his way home from church in Pakistan
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Gunmen kill priest on his way home from church in Pakistan
- Attackers opened fire on the car carrying Pastor Siraj and Rev Patrick Naeem in Peshawar’s Chamkani area
- Pakistan’s northwestern areas bordering Afghanistan have seen a rise in militant attacks in recent days
Pakistan, China to sign multiple MoUs at major agriculture investment conference today
- Hundreds of Chinese and Pakistani firms to attend Islamabad event
- Conference seen as part of expanding CPEC ties into agriculture, trade
KARACHI: Islamabad and Beijing are set to sign multiple memorandums of understanding (MoUs) to boost agricultural investment and cooperation at a major conference taking place in the capital today, Monday, with hundreds of Chinese and Pakistani companies expected to participate.
The conference is being billed by Pakistan’s Ministry of National Food Security and Research as a platform for deepening bilateral agricultural ties and supporting broader economic engagement between the two countries.
“Multiple memorandums of understanding will be signed at the Pakistan–China Agricultural Conference,” the Ministry of National Food Security said in a statement. “115 Chinese and 165 Pakistani companies will participate.”
The conference reflects a growing emphasis on expanding Pakistan-China economic cooperation beyond the transport and energy foundations of the flagship China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) into agriculture, industry and technology.
Under its first phase launched in 2015, CPEC, a core component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, focused primarily on transportation infrastructure, energy generation and connectivity projects linking western China to the Arabian Sea via Pakistan. That phase included motorways, power plants and the development of the Gwadar Port in the country's southwest, aimed at helping Pakistan address chronic power shortages and enhance transport connectivity.
In recent years, both governments have formally moved toward a “CPEC 2.0” phase aimed at diversifying the corridor’s impact into areas such as special economic zones, innovation, digital cooperation and agriculture. Second-phase discussions have highlighted Pakistan’s goal of modernizing its agricultural sector, attracting Chinese technology and investment, and boosting export potential, with high-level talks taking place between planning officials and investors in Beijing.
Agri-sector cooperation has also seen practical collaboration, with joint initiatives examining technology transfer, export protocols and value-chain development, including partnerships in livestock, mechanization and horticulture.
Organizers say the Islamabad conference will bring together government policymakers, private sector investors, industry associations and multinational agribusiness firms from both nations. Discussions will center on investment opportunities, technology adoption, export expansion and building linkages with global buyers within the framework of Pakistan-China economic cooperation.
