![\"Sunil](\"https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Sunil-Masih14-was-killed-on-Feb.-5-2024-in-Gujranwala-District-Pakistan.-Christian-Daily-International-Morning-Star-News-screenshot.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nSunil Masih,14, was killed on Feb. 5, 2024 in Gujranwala District, Pakistan. (Christian Daily International-Morning Star News screenshot)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
LAHORE<\/strong>, Pakistan<\/strong>\u00a0(Christian Daily International<\/a>\u2013<\/em>Morning Star News<\/a>) \u2013 Muslim gunmen shouting threats against Christians shot a 14-year-old Christian dead on Monday (Feb. 5) in Pakistan, sources said.<\/p>\n Sunil Masih and other Christians were standing in a market in the Mandiala Warraich area of Gujranwala District, Punjab Province, on Monday evening when six Muslim men armed with pistols arrived on motorcycles and opened fire on them, said the slain boy\u2019s uncle, Mehboob Gill.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cWe were talking to each other when suddenly Zaman Butt and his accomplices Anas Yaseen, Adil Abdul Rehman, Ashraf Inayat Ullah and two unidentified men came there on motorcycles,\u201d Gill said. \u201cAdil shouted that no Christian in the area should be left alive, after which Zaman opened fire on Sunil with his pistol, hitting him in the chest.\u201d<\/p>\n Yaseen shot at another Christian boy, identified only as Jamshed, with the bullet only grazing him, Gill said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe other assailants also opened fire on us with their weapons, but we managed to save ourselves by taking cover of a wall,\u201d Gill stated in the First Information Report (FIR No. 226\/24) registered with the Gujranwala Cantt Police Station.<\/p>\n The gunmen fled the scene while hurling threats at the Christians and so far have not been arrested.<\/p>\n \u201cWe rushed Sunil to a local hospital, but he succumbed to his bullet wound before doctors could begin their treatment,\u201d Gill said, adding that his nephew was an eighth-grade student whose father, George Masih, works at a local car shop.<\/p>\n The Rev. Numan\u00a0Matto\u00a0of the\u00a0Gondalanwala\u00a0Presbyterian Church in Gujranwala said the murder was religiously motivated.<\/p>\n \u201cIn May 2023, some Muslim youths disrupted a marriage ceremony of Christians and also attacked a church,\u201d Matto told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. \u201cHowever, police and the district administration did not take any action against the influential accused, despite several protests by the Christian community.\u201d<\/p>\n Between 400 to 450 Christians have lived in the area peaceably for decades, but recently the environment has turned hostile toward religious minorities, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf the police had taken stern action against the accused involved in the attack on the church last year, our young child would not have died at the hands of these criminals,\u201d Matto said.<\/p>\n Fearing more attacks, he urged senior police and district administration officials to ensure the protection of the area\u2019s Christians.<\/p>\n \u201cSunil\u2019s murderers are at large, and the audacity of their attack shows that they will not hesitate to strike again,\u201d he said. \u201cThe police will be responsible for any more loss of life of Christians if they do not take adequate security measures.\u201d<\/p>\n The killing of Sunil was the second deadly attack in Punjab Province in three months.<\/p>\n On Nov. 9, a 20-year-old Christian medical technician student, Farhan Ul Qamar, was shot to death<\/a> by a Muslim in his house in Talwandi Inayat Khan village, Pasrur tehsil of Sialkot District, Punjab Province, in the presence of family members.<\/p>\n The slain Christian\u2019s father, Noor Ul Qamar, said the killer, Muhammad Zubair, showed hatred for Christians and Jews, mistakenly referring to the family as Jews as he ranted at them.<\/p>\n Zubair held the family hostage at gunpoint for nearly 40 minutes, refusing to let them go near their fatally injured son, Ul Qamar said.<\/p>\n \u201cMy son was struggling for his life, bleeding profusely from the bullet wounds, but his murderer, Muhammad Zubair, did not allow us to even give him some water, let alone comfort him,\u201d Ul Qamar said at the time. \u201cHe repeatedly called us \u2018Jews\u2019 as he cursed and waved his weapon at us. We all watched helplessly, pleading with him to leave, but he wouldn\u2019t go.\u201d<\/p>\n Farhan Ul Qamar was the youngest of four children. Zubair was arrested hours later from his house, where he was sleeping peacefully.<\/p>\n Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors\u2019 2024 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian, as it was the previous year.<\/p>\n If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/resources\/aid-agencies\/<\/em><\/a>\u00a0for a list of organizations that can orient you on how to get involved. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n If you or your organization would like to help enable Morning Star News to continue raising awareness of persecuted Christians worldwide with original-content reporting, please consider collaborating at\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/donate\/<\/em><\/a>?<\/em><\/p>\n ###<\/p>\n \u00a9 2024 Morning Star News. Articles\/photos may be reprinted with credit to Morning Star News.\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/morningstarnews.org<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Tweet:\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/twitter.com\/morningstarnewz\/<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Facebook:\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MorningStarNews<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Morning Star News is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation that relies solely on contributions to offer original news reports of persecuted Christians. By providing reliable news on the suffering church, Morning Star News\u2019 mission is to empower those in the free world to help and to encourage persecuted Christians that they are not forgotten or alone. For free subscription, contact\u00a0<\/em>editor@morningstarnews.org<\/em><\/a>;\u00a0to make tax-deductible donations, visit\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/donate\/<\/em><\/a>? or send check to Morning Star News, 728 A Kodiak St., Eielson AFB, AK 99702, USA.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Muslim Gunmen Kill 14-Year-Old Christian Boy in Pakistan<\/a> appeared first on Morningstar News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n