Pakistani Muslim Ordered to Return Kidnapped Christian Girl

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A federal court in Pakistan ordered police to find and present a 30-year-old Muslim man and the 13-year-old Christian girl he abducted, forcibly married and converted to Islam.

Shehryar Ahmad kidnapped Maria Shahbaz on July 29 last year, as she stepped outside her home to go to a nearby shop. Maria’s family has been fighting for her release for months now, but their petitions were denied, as Shehryar had forced Maria to lie about her age and say she chose Islam and marriage of her own free will. This new court order on January 9 offers a chance for her freedom.

Rights advocates say such cases follow a familiar pattern in Pakistan, where kidnapped girls, some as young as 10, are abducted, forcibly converted to Islam, and raped under the cover of Islamic “marriages.” Victims are often pressured to record false statements in favor of their abductors, while judges routinely ignore documentary evidence of age and return the children to their kidnappers as “legal wives.”

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari on May 29 (2025) signed into law a landmark bill aimed at curbing child marriage in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), setting the minimum marriage age at 18 for both genders. The law was enacted despite fierce opposition from Islamist groups, including the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), the country’s top Islamic body.

The CII declared that classifying marriage under the age of 18 as rape did not conform to sharia (Islamic law).

Christian Daily International-Morning Star News, January 15

Lord, by Your mercy, please make the way for Maria’s quick release and safe return to her parents. Protect her from harm and heal her mind and heart from the trauma she has experienced. Let her feel Your presence near and hear Your voice comforting her and healing her. Don’t let Shehryar get away with the evil he has done. Bring him to justice. But most of all, Lord, we pray for his salvation. Meet him in his dreams and show him who You truly are. Bring him to his knees in repentance and fear of the Lord. Do the same for every policeman who colluded with him and every court official who ignored Maria’s age and returned her to her captor. Lift the veil from their eyes so they will see You as You truly are. Stop the raping of Christian girls and women, Lord. Stop the abductions, forced marriages and forced conversions. Surround every Christian in Pakistan with Your angels as a Shield and block every Muslim bent on violence and evil in such miraculous ways they will turn from Islam to follow Christ. For every Christian who is persecuted, bring 1,000 Muslims to faith. Grow Your church by the millions, Lord. And make the way for every one of the more than 800 unreached people groups in Pakistan to hear Your good news in their own language and turn to You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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