More than 100 people have been arrested in Pakistan following the brutal lynching of a Sri Lankan man accused of blasphemy, with the country’s government condemning the violence.
Priyantha Diyawadana, a 48-year-old factory manager, was killed by enraged Muslims after being accused of desecrating posters bearing the name of Islam’s Prophet Mohammed.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said in a tweet he had informed Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa of the arrests over the phone, and also conveyed his country’s anger and shame.
He also assured the Sri Lankan leader that the “full severity of the law” would be used on those responsible for Friday’s “vigilante killing”.
A mob of hundreds descended on the sports equipment factory in the district of Sialkot in Punjab province and grabbed Mr Diyawadana after he was accused of blasphemy.
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They lynched him before burning his body in public, police said.
The victim’s charred body will be transported to Islamabad, where Sri Lankan embassy officials will take the coffin home.
In the conservative society of Pakistan, allegations of blasphemy can prompt mob attacks, and the country’s blasphemy law carries the death penalty for anyone found guilty of the offence.
Police have arrested 13 suspects and detained dozens of others allegedly involved in the lynching.
Investigators in Punjab have been examining footage from about 160 CCTV cameras to ascertain the role of potential suspects and police said 10 teams were conducting raids to locate more of those involved.
Protests have since broken out outside the Pakistan high commission to Sri Lanka against the killing.
Mr Khan later tweeted about the bravery of a civilian who had endangered his own life to try and protect Mr Diyawadana from the vigilante mob – and said he would be given an award.
Under the Pakistan Penal Code, blasphemy against any recognised religion is penalised, with perpetrators facing penalties from a fine to death.
The country’s government has long been under pressure to change its blasphemy laws, a move Islamists strongly resist.