A 16-year-old boy in Pakistan has been jailed for a Facebook "like", according to World Watch Monitor.
Nabeel Masih – also known as Nabeel Chohan – is accused of committing blasphemy by liking and sharing the post which "defamed and disrespected" the Kaaba in Mecca, at the centre of Islam's most sacred mosque.
He was arrested after police raised his home in Dina Nath village in the Punjab region following a complaint against him.
The complainant, Akhtar Ali, told police: "On 18 September, I was with my friends Bakht Khan and Saddam... We took our friend Waqar's mobile phone and started seeing pictures of his various friends on Facebook. But when we opened Nabeel Masih's profile, there was a picture posted in which the Kaaba is defamed and disrespected. Seeing that picture, our religious feelings were hurt."
Nabeel's cousin, Imran, 24, told World Watch Monitor that Nabeel had nothing against Muslims and meant no harm.
"It was only a mistake by him and he clearly stated that he did not intend to hurt but to condemn the post," Imran said. He added that Nabeel is illiterate and works as a labourer in a nearby ghee factory.
Pastor Samuel Masih, who was visiting his sisters in the village, said that, although everything seemed calm, "many of the Christians have left the area due to fear of security".
Phoolnagar Police Station head, Shahbaz Ahmed Dogar, reiterated that everything was under control and urged Christians to return.
"There was no announcement from mosque loudspeakers or any gathering of people," he said. "Those who have left the area have taken only precautionary measures and I would encourage them to return to their houses."
Christians in Pakistan have faced repeated attacks and the country's draconian blasphemy laws are often used as a pretext for intercommunal violence. Among the most well-known victims of the law, which has been widely condemned, is Asia Bibi, sentenced to death in 2010 following an argument with Muslim neighbours. She remains in prison.
