Pakistan (text reproduced here; link to changing page): A Protestant pastor in Pakistan’s Punjab province was murdered in the early hours of January 5, just minutes after he left his home to catch a train to Lahore. Pastor Mukhtar Masih, 50, was shot once in the chest at close range with a 32 caliber pistol sometime after 3 a.m. in Khanewal, 180 miles southwest of Lahore. Police officials ruled out robbery as a murder motive because 3,500 rupees ($58) were found untouched in Masih’s pockets and there were no signs of struggle. Police suspected it was a grudge killing. As pastor of the local Church of God, Masih regularly conducted 10 minutes of prayer and Bible reading over the church loudspeaker each day at 6 a.m., a common practice in areas which, like Khanewal, have large Christian populations. Parishioners from Masih’s congregation confirmed that Muslims had threatened their pastor “on many occasions” and several times tore down the speakers. Nonetheless, they could not identify any recent incident that might have provoked his murder. (Compass Direct)