Amnesty Urges Review of Pakistani Blasphemy Laws

Call comes after a girl was arrested for burning a Koran

ISLAMABAD: Amnesty International has urged Pakistan to reform its blasphemy laws and protect a young Christian girl arrested for allegedly burning pages inscribed with verses from the holy Quran.

Rimsha (previously also reported as Rifta), who is between 10 and 13 years old and is reported to have Down's Syndrome, was taken into custody in a low-income area of Islamabad on Thursday after Muslim protestors demanded she be punished.

Polly Truscott, Amnesty International's South Asia director, said the case showed the "erosion of the rule of law" in Pakistan and the dangers faced by those accused of blasphemy.