"I will forgive you in the name of Jesus'

A mob of about 800 mustered, armed with guns and explosives. Witnesses say some of the attackers were outsiders, including members of radical organisations linked to the Taliban and al-Qaeda. They were well-armed. 'We heard an announcement from the mosque that the Christians had disgraced the Koran and that Muslims should come and kill them,' said Pastor Khaliq Barkat (47), whose New Apostolic Church was destroyed. 'They threatened to burn us alive in our houses.'

Mehnga Masih, a 54-year-old teacher, escaped with his wife and nine children. 'We heard the shouting of the attackers. They were saying, 'Kill these Christians.' They came to my house. My family and I were locked inside, hiding. They threatened that if we did not convert to Islam they would kill us. We were really frightened. All the time we were praying and asking Jesus to save us.'

Many years ago the government parcelled up the land to Muslims and to Christians. The part the Christians live in is known as the Colony. A highway was built, the village grew and the land became more valuable, more desirable. 'This was not a blasphemy case,' said Katherine Sapna, a programme officer for CLAAS (Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement). 'This land has become valuable – they just wanted to grab the property.' The government has rebuilt the 47 houses destroyed in Korian, but no one has replaced the cattle which were stolen or the jobs the Christians have lost – local employers now refuse to employ them.  
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