By hailing Haniyeh as a "great leader," Abbas and his Palestinian Authority cohorts are sending a message to all Palestinians that the murderous Hamas leader is their role model.

[T]he Biden-Harris administration and those who continue to talk about the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.... must be reminded that Haniyeh, who is being praised by Abbas and the PA as a "great leader," belongs to a group that has long been waging a Jihad (holy war) to murder Jews and destroy Israel – and that does not have the slightest intention of being "revitalized."

Abbas and other Palestinian Authority leaders have once again demonstrated their preference to ally with Islamist terror groups such as Hamas rather than to secure a brighter future for their own people. Abbas and the PA have also once again served as a reminder that they share the same goal as Hamas: glorify terrorism and destroy Israel.

Salma Munir, a mentally ill 25-year-old Christian woman in Sheikhupura, Pakistan, was kidnapped, repeatedly raped, and ultimately died in June 2024. The horrifying details emerged when the accused, Omar alias Khatri, son of Sarwar Khokher from Ajnianwala, threatened Salma's younger sister, Nisha Munir.

Nisha, terrified by Omar's threats of making her disappear like her sister....

"Omar kidnapped my daughter Salma a few days earlier. He sold her to other people and forced her into the sex trade. She was sold multiple times until we found her in Hafizabad in critical condition. We pleaded with the people there to let us take her home for treatment. Despite our efforts, she succumbed to her injuries...." — Munir Masih, the father of Salma and Nisha.

[T]here is much skepticism about achieving justice due to the victim's Christian identity. We doubt that the police or the justice system would treat the case with the seriousness it deserves.

This is a kind of case that must be taken up by the Chief Justice of Pakistan as a suo moto action. Justice should not only be served for this poor family but also set an example to deter such heinous acts in the future. Although this case is fit for suo moto intervention, I fear no action will be taken, and the family will be denied justice.

There are compounded disadvantages faced by Christian girls in Pakistan, who suffer due to their gender, poverty, and religious minority status. The law consistently favours the influential and Muslim perpetrators of crimes against Christians. Abductions, forced conversions, and coerced marriages to their kidnappers, many of whom are already married with children, are common. These girls are sometimes sold and pushed into the sex trade, as happened to Salma. Her case is not the first, nor will it be the last, but it must be taken seriously.

Authorities should provide justice for the Munir family and to take definitive steps to prevent such atrocities in the future. Salma's case must serve as a wake-up call. The authorities need to act decisively to protect vulnerable communities and ensure that justice is not just a privilege for the influential but a right for all.

The Free World, for its own interests, would do itself a service to draw national and international attention to the systemic injustices faced by marginalized communities in Pakistan, urging immediate and meaningful action to address these human rights violations.