Man killed for blasphemy

A Muslim mob descended on a sports equipment factory in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province on Friday, killing a Sri Lankan man and burning his body publicly over allegations of blasphemy, police said. Armagan Gondal, a police chief in the district of Sialkot, where the killing occurred, said factory workers had accused the victim of desecrating posters bearing the name of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. Police said initial information shows the Sri Lankan, later identified as Priyantha Kumara, was lynched inside the factory. Videos circulating on social media showed the mob dragging the man’s heavily bruised body outside, where they burned it, surrounded by hundreds who cheered. Police were still trying to determine what exactly prompted the mob to attack Kumara.