Protests Erupt as Pakistan Executes a Murderer Who's Hailed as a Hero
Source: Vice News
Pakistan has executed a former police bodyguard who killed the Punjab province governor over his call to reform strict blasphemy laws, in what was one of the country's most high-profile assassinations.
Street protests broke out within hours by supporters of the killer, who consider him a hero for defending the faith. The head of the Islamabad Bar Council called for a day-long strike of lawyers in protest against the hanging.
Mumtaz Qadri was working as a bodyguard for Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab province, when he shot him dead in Islamabad in 2011. The governor was a vocal critic of Pakistan's harsh blasphemy laws, which stipulate a mandatory death sentence for anyone who insults the Prophet Muhammad.
"Qadri was hanged at around 4.30am," senior police officer Rizwan Omar Gondal said. The execution took place in the city of Rawalpindi outside Islamabad.
Read more: https://news.vice.com/article/protests-erupt-as-pakistan-executes-a-murderer-whos-hailed-as-a-hero
= new reply since forum marked as read
