The persecution of Christians in Pakistan continues to intensify, with extremist groups targeting places of worship, families, and entire communities, according to a report by Mission Network News. The findings come even as the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has urged the US government to redesignate Pakistan as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for systematic and egregious violations of religious freedom.

Extremist Attacks on Christian Communities

Greg Kelley of Unknown Nations, an organisation that works with indigenous missionaries worldwide, described the scale of the threat facing Christians in Pakistan. "They [extremists] will attack churches. They will go after families. And so there's tremendous adversity that the Christian church deals with inside of Pakistan," Kelley stated.

Kelley added that sustained international pressure — particularly from the United States — has the potential to shift conditions on the ground in Pakistan. Mission Network News cited his remarks as part of a broader call for coordinated global action.

Forced Conversions and Kidnapping of Minors

Among the most alarming patterns documented is the kidnapping, forced conversion, and forced marriage of Christian girls, some as young as 12 years old. Families reportedly receive little more than an official notice that their daughter has been converted and married into a Muslim household, with courts offering minimal recourse. This pattern has been flagged repeatedly by human rights observers as a systemic failure of the Pakistani legal system to protect religious minorities.

USCIRF Annual Report: A Troubling Trajectory

In its 2025 annual report, the USCIRF — a US government advisory body separate from the State Department that monitors religious freedom abroad and makes policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress — concluded that religious freedom conditions in Pakistan "continued along a troubling trajectory" through 2025.

"The government continued to enforce its strict blasphemy law, impacting people of all faiths, including religious minorities. Increasing vigilante attacks and mob violence targeting religious minorities, specifically Ahmadiyya Muslims and Christians, contributed to an intensified climate of fear and intolerance," the report stated.

The USCIRF noted that Pakistani authorities continued to use the blasphemy law and its death penalty provision to punish those accused of insulting Islam. Last year, four individuals were sentenced to death for allegedly posting blasphemous content on social media.

Notable Cases Highlighting Legal Persecution

In January 2025, a mentally ill Christian man, Farhan Masih, was imprisoned on blasphemy and terrorism charges. Despite being acquitted, Masih could not return to his village due to fears for his safety — illustrating how acquittal offers little protection in practice.

In a separate case, a sessions court sentenced another man to death after a member of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) accused him of insulting religious sentiment. The following month, the Lahore High Court removed from its case list the appeal hearing of Junaid Hafeez, who has been held in solitary confinement since 2014. A sessions court sentenced Hafeez to death in 2019, and his trial has remained pending since 2020, according to the USCIRF report.

Calls for International Action

The USCIRF's recommendation to redesignate Pakistan as a CPC under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) was made in March 2025, citing systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations. Observers argue that without firm diplomatic and legislative action from the international community, conditions for Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan are unlikely to improve in the near term.