Christian communities in Pakistan are grappling with shock and grief after the killing of the Rev Kamran Salamat, a Presbyterian pastor who was gunned down outside his home in Gujranwala on 5 December.
His death comes just three months after he survived a previous shooting in Islamabad, and the motive behind the attacks stays unclear.
Pastor Salamat, aged 45, was preparing to take his 16-year-old daughter to school when a motorcyclist approached and opened fire, striking him within the wrist, ear, and abdomen. His brother-in-law, the Rev. Shahzad Salman, confirmed that the pastor died three hours after being taken to hospital.
“My brother-in-law succumbed to his injuries on the hospital three hours later,” Pastor Salman told Morning Star News. He added that the gunman fled the scene, and that the family has no information concerning the identity or motives of the attacker.
Large numbers of Christians gathered for Pastor Salamat’s burial the next day. A father of three, he had moved his family from Islamabad to Gujranwala after surviving a previous shooting in September. At that point, he had been struck within the leg but refused to pursue a case against the assailant.
“Rev. Kamran was a committed missionary, but he never shared the main points of his mission work along with his family,” Pastor Salman explained. “In fact, when he was attacked in September, he refused to pursue the case and told the police that he had forgiven his unknown assailant. Even after the incident, he never revealed to us who was threatening his life.”
According to his family, Pastor Salamat had devoted his recent ministry to supporting poor Christian women through a stitching centre, and he had also carried out outreach in a few of Pakistan’s most difficult regions. Christian leaders noted that he had repeatedly travelled to tribal areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, preaching amongst Afghan and Pakistani Muslim communities.
“It’s quite possible that he was martyred attributable to his missionary work,” one church leader commented. “The truth will surface only after the police arrest the assailant.”
Police in Gujranwala are analysing CCTV footage, and Pastor Salman believes the attacker could have been accompanied by two others. So far no arrests have been made.
Christian leaders across Pakistan have expressed deep sorrow and called for urgent motion. The Rev. Reuben Qamar, moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Pakistan, condemned the killing and urged an intensive investigation.
“We mourn the heinous killing of Pastor Kamran Salamat, a faithful servant of God,” Qamar wrote on Facebook. “His death just isn’t only a private loss but one other wound to the Christians in Pakistan. Even in our grief, we remain steadfast in hope, rejoicing in Jesus’s victory over the darkness, sharing peace and like to this hostile world.”
Pentecostal pastor and evangelist Naeem Nasir echoed those concerns, noting that Pastor Salamat had faced persistent threats.
“Extremists had been pursuing him and threatening him all over the place he went,” Pastor Nasir stated on Facebook, recalling a conversation with the pastor’s mother-in-law. “He moved from Islamabad to Gujranwala, but they were still not satisfied. They desired to stop his passion for preaching the gospel.”
Pastor Salamat’s murder follows a series of violent incidents targeting Christians in Pakistan. In September, a Catholic pilgrim was fatally shot and one other wounded on their method to the Marian shrine in Mariamabad.
Pakistan currently ranks eighth on Open Doors’ World Watch List of nations where Christians face probably the most severe persecution.
As investigations proceed, many in Pakistan’s Christian community fear the killing of one other pastor will deepen anxiety amongst believers already navigating threats and discrimination.
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