Pakistan lawyer who represented Asia Bibi claims threat to life after court acquits Christian couple

Following a Pakistan court acquitting a Christian couple sentenced to death on blasphemy charges, their defence lawyer Saif ul Malook said he faces threats to his life. Saif ul Malook had also represented Asia Bibi.

The Pakistani lawyer who helped free Asia Bibi, who was acquitted after spending years on death row in a blasphemy case that attracted international condemnation, has claimed that his life is in danger. Lawyer Saif ul Malook has over the years successfully overturned a number of convictions for blasphemy in Pakistan. He said on Monday that several posts on social media had called for his “execution”, as per a BBC report. Saif ul Mulook had reportedly left Pakistan in 2018 due to fear that he could be attacked after the conviction of Asia Bibi was overturned. Asia Bibi, a mother of four, was convicted in 2010 after being accused of insulting Islam in a row with her neighbours. She maintained her innocence, but spent most of the time in solitary confinement. She was eventually acquitted by Pakistan's Supreme Court in 2018.