On Tuesday, July 8, two Christian teens were exonerated after a minor dispute led to a false blasphemy charge, according to a report by Christian Daily International. 

Adil Babar, 20, and Simon Nadeem, 16, were just teenagers when they were charged in 2023 under Section 295 of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws for blaspheming Muhammad. According to reports, the two had been engaged in playful banter outside their homes until a neighbor started beating them.  

The neighbor accused the boys of calling a puppy “Muhammad Ali,” which is considered blasphemy in Pakistan and punishable by death. Witnesses say there was no puppy outside and that the neighbor was making claims of blasphemy to punish the boys. The trial for Babar and Nadeem lasted almost two years. 

According to Justice Nasira Javaid Iqbal of People’s Commission for Minorities Rights (PCMR), “The blasphemy laws have been consistently misused to settle personal disputes, persecute minority groups, and incite mob violence and hatred.” 

Blasphemy charges have become more common during the last few years, with 344 new cases in 2024. Since 1987, at least 2,793 Pakistanis have been accused of blasphemy, and at least 104 were killed extra-judicially following the accusations.  

According to a report done by the Center for Social Justice, “The blatant weaponization of blasphemy laws continued to enable persecution, religious intolerance and widespread human rights violations …”  

Pakistan is No. 8 on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List, making it hard for Christians to live out their faith for fear of persecution. Blasphemy laws are just one way in which Pakistani Christians face persecution. 

Source and photo: International Christian Concern