KARACHI: PRIEST SHOT TO DEATH IN LAHORE, PAKISTAN

[desousa246@aol.com]

Date: Sun, 06 Jul 2003 19:09:39 -0500
From: "Fr. Richard W. Gant, S.T.D., J.U.L." <rgant@flash.net>
To: cinjub <cinjub@cin.org>
Subject: Catholic News:? Priest Shot to Death in Pakistan

Priest Shot to Death in Pakistan


LAHORE, Pakistan, JULY 6, 2003 (Zenit.org).- A Catholic priest was shot
dead by assailants Saturday in Renala Khord, in an attack police say was
a robbery but others say was terrorism.

According to local police sources, six armed individuals entered Father
George Ibrahim's residence, shooting him fatally and wounding his parish
assistant, Pervez Masih. Renala Khord is near Okara, around 120
kilometers (75
miles) southwest of Lahore.

The All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA) called the killing "a
heinous and brutal act of terrorism" against a Christian religious
representative.

The priest had received threats in the past, due to the work carried out
by the local Catholic school, said Shahbaz Bhatti, head of the APMA.

Attacks against Christian persons and institutions intensified in
Pakistan beginning in 2002, when the country's government supported the
U.S.-led war against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.

The priest's murder took place a day after three suicide bombers killed
44 people who were worshipping in the Quetta mosque, the latest in a
series of attacks on the country's minority Shiite Muslims.
ZE03070602