Two brothers, both of whom were active in their local Christian community, were charged with blasphemy and then shot dead by masked gunmen just outside a court in Faisalabad, Pakistan. The shooting has caused tensions to rise in the the large Christian section of the city and at least ten people were injured as fighting broke out. Police reinforcements have now been called in to manage the situation.
Pastor Rashid Emmanuel, 32, and Sajid, 24, were accused of writing a pamphlet critical of the Prophet Muhammad, but a human rights activist believes that they were framed.
Pakistan's controversial blasphemy law carries the death penalty, and so no one in their right mind would write a pamphlet that is offensive to Muhammad and then include their names and contact details on it says Atif Jameel of the Minorities Democratic Foundation.
He concluded: "This appears to be a conspiracy against peace and religious harmony in Faisalabad."
The brother were arrested earlier this month and since then there has been significant tension between Muslims and Christians, which included a march by Muslims demanding that the brothers receive the death penalty.
No one has yet been executed under Pakistan's blasphemy law, but about 10 accused have been murdered before the completion of their trial, according to a BBC Urdu correspondent in Lahore. Others are living in exile to avoid punishment.
Human rights activists are desperate to repeal the law because it is exploitable by those harbouring personal grudges and by religious extremists.