Iran recently hanged two men for blasphemy, saying they had insulted the prophet Muhammad and promoted atheism. They were arrested in 2021 and spent months in solitary confinement without family contact. Iran has…

Mubarak Bala, an outspoken Nigerian atheist, was sentenced to 24 years in prison after pleading guilty to blaspheming Islam. The landmark case placed freedom of religion and expression under new scrutiny. A BBC…

Zafar Bhatti, Pakistan’s longest serving blasphemy convict (he has been in prison for ten years) had his life sentence increased to hanging in January 2022 - even though every piece of physical and…

In Pakistan, false accusations of blasphemy are common and often motivated by personal vendettas or religious hatred. Imran was falsely accused of blasphemy and imprisoned for life. On 15 December the Lahore High…

Islam, Christianity, and Free Speech We think of Europe as secular, progressive, and confidently post-religious. But try criticizing Islam. Should governments be in the business of protecting people’s feelings? Most Americans, I think…

The Commission on International Religious Freedom has issued a report on blasphemy laws globally. The five worst-scoring nations are Iran, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, and Qatar, while 71 of the world's 195 countries penalties…

Motions against ‘Islamophobia’ are not legally binding but extremists are demanding them as laws. Shutting out any criticism against hardliner behaviour in the West actually means giving extremists a license to commit atrocities.…

Even though the incumbent governor of Jakarta, ‘Ahok’ Tjahaja Purnama, a Christian, is awaiting trial for blasphemy, he is still in the running in the current elections for his post. In the first…

Pakistan’s religious affairs minister has announced that there will be no change to the country’s ‘blasphemy’ laws. Previous attempts to amend the harsh legislation have been blocked, and those proposing changes have faced…

The son of a murdered Pakistani politician is facing death threats from Islamists because he supported an imprisoned Christian woman who is on death row. Human rights activist Shan Taseer asked for people…