Somalia:
A recent convert from Islam to Christianity has been attacked a second time after his relatives discovered his new location. Mohammad Abdul had fled the Lower Juba Region after being hospitalised with a knife injury after an attack on 5 May. On 8 July, 5 relatives tracked him to a rented house 30 miles from his home and again attacked the whole family, stabbing Mohammad in the abdomen, breaking his wife’s ankle and beating their five children. The assailants fled after neighbours came to assist the family. The couple continue to be in fear of their lives and have received hospital care following the assault.
Pakistan:
A 15-year-old Christian girl was abducted and raped by two Muslim men as she returned from visiting a shop near her home in the Lahore area on 1 July. After searching for their daughter, they eventually saw her with one of the suspects. She was unsteady on her feet and injured. A medical examination confirmed the assault and despite reporting the suspects to the police, no action has been taken against them. The family has faced pressure to withdraw the complaint.
India:
The State Assembly of Uttar Pradesh has increased the maximum punishment for unlawful conversions from ten years to life imprisonment, has also raised the bar for the granting of bail and made new provision for any person to file a complaint under the legislation. While it is claimed that the bill aims to curb the practice of targeting women for marriage and forced conversion, it is feared that the legislation will be misused to target the lawful activities of non-Hindu minorities.