by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent
LAHORE, PAKISTAN (Worthy News) – A 14-year-old Christian girl is recovering after being abducted and raped in Pakistan’s Punjab province, according to family members and police.
The girl was abducted on December 7 after briefly leaving her home to buy bread in the city of Sahiwal, her brother Sahil George told the Christian Daily International–Morning Star News service.
He said two Muslim men forced her at gunpoint onto a motorcycle and took her to a house, where one of them raped her.
George recalled that the family became alarmed when the child did not return home and began searching nearby streets.
“During the search, two residents told us that a girl had been thrown outside a house by motorcycle riders and appeared to be semi-unconscious,” George added. “When we rushed there, we saw that it was my sister.”
Police transported the girl to a hospital, where a medical examination confirmed rape, George said.
POLICE DETAINS SUSPECTS
Police initially detained three suspects, publicly identified as Muhammad Bilal Arshad, Muhammad Zohaib, and Shamil Arshad. George said that Bilal Arshad and Shamil Arshad were later released after Zohaib “claimed sole responsibility for the crime.”
Worthy News does not name victims of sexual abuse unless they choose to be identified publicly.
George said the attack followed an earlier dispute he had with one of the suspects over money and a trophy won during an illegal rooster-fighting event as part of efforts to provide for his family. His father died about 15 years ago, leaving him as the primary breadwinner for his widowed mother and two sisters, he explained.
However, a Christian human rights lawyer told Worthy News he doubted that a court would find the accused guilty.
Human rights groups say Christian and Hindu women and girls in Pakistan face heightened risks of sexual violence, abduction, and intimidation, often compounded by poverty and limited access to legal protection.
Advocacy groups and court records have documented hundreds of reported abuse cases each year involving minority girls in Pakistan, a mainly Islamic nation. However, rights groups say many incidents go unreported due to fear of retaliation or social pressure. Families have also reported out-of-court settlements and suspect releases.
Pakistan, where more than 96 percent of the population is Muslim, ranked eighth on the Open Doors 2025 World Watch List of 50 countries where it says Christians face the most severe persecution.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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A 14-year-old Christian girl is recovering after being abducted and raped in Pakistan’s Punjab province, according to family members and police.