Victims of Pakistan’s 2013 church bombing face delayed compensation as aid trickles in, raising concerns over justice and transparency.
Newsroom (05/05/2026 Gaudium Press) More than a decade after one of Pakistan’s deadliest attacks on a Christian community, victims and Catholic advocacy groups are raising concerns over delayed and fragmented compensation, even as authorities begin distributing financial aid in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
On May 2, the provincial Department of Endowments, Hajj, Religious and Minority Affairs issued checks to 37 victims from minority communities affected by terrorism. The recipients included 11 widows, 24 orphaned children, and two persons with disabilities, each receiving between 1 million and 2 million rupees ($3,588 to $7,175).
Several beneficiaries were linked to the 2013 twin suicide bombing at All Saints Church in Peshawar, where at least 96 people were killed and more than 150 injured. The attack was claimed by a faction of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and remains one of the country’s most devastating assaults on a place of worship.
Among those receiving compensation was Zubair Zafar, who lost his father in the bombing. Now employed as an office assistant at the civil secretariat, Zafar said the funds would go toward his siblings’ education and his younger sister’s marriage. Forced to abandon his ambition of joining the military, he began working after completing grade 12 to support his family.
“I could not leave my family as the eldest of five children,” he said, noting that his mother works as a kitchen in-charge at an orphanage run by the Peshawar Diocese of the Church of Pakistan.
Despite the financial relief, Zafar expressed skepticism about broader government promises. Officials have pledged additional support, including laptops, scholarships, and profit-sharing schemes for widows and orphans, but he said progress has been slow. “Given the pace, we have little hope,” he added.
Delayed Disbursements and Frustration
The recent payments come after years of delays. While the provinces of Sindh and Punjab provided compensation ranging from 200,000 to 500,000 rupees shortly after the attack, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lagged behind despite court interventions and repeated appeals.
Frustration intensified when an initial 200 million rupee compensation package specifically earmarked for Christian victims was converted into a broader minority endowment fund. Families say this diluted targeted assistance intended for those most affected by the church bombing.
On April 1, Chief Minister Sohail Afridi approved doubling the fund to 400 million rupees and ordered expedited payments. However, survivors say the process remains slow and lacks transparency.
Khuram Yaqoob Sahotra, who lost his right eye in the attack, described returning from the recent ceremony without receiving compensation. “I was told the compensation would be given before July 1. I expected the checks the same day. Now we are told to wait again for approval,” he said.
Sahotra, a 40-year-old father of three, continues to suffer from severe injuries, including ball bearings lodged in his spine. Unable to work after losing his job during the COVID-19 pandemic, he now depends on extended family support. “There is no clear plan. There is no transparency,” he said.
Habib Khan, additional secretary of the Auqaf Department, said at least 100 more minority victims are expected to receive compensation within the month. He emphasized that data verification is ongoing and that incomplete cases are being processed, though he declined to address the prolonged delays.
‘A Mockery of Justice’
Rights advocates argue that the compensation, arriving more than 12 years after the attack, fails to meet the needs of victims who have endured years of hardship.
The Cecil and Iris Chaudhry Foundation, a Catholic organization that provided vocational training to 80 orphaned girls and widowed mothers after the bombing, reported that many victims have died in the intervening years due to inadequate medical care and financial strain.
“More than a decade has passed, during which many injured victims lost their lives and families lost their sole breadwinners,” said Michelle Chaudhry, the foundation’s president. “Disbursing funds in installments now amounts to a mockery of justice.”
She called on authorities to release full compensation in a single payment, stressing the need for dignity and respect in addressing victims’ long-standing grievances.
A Community Still Under Threat
All Saints Church, built in 1883 within Peshawar’s Kohati Gate, holds unique architectural significance as Pakistan’s only church designed in a mosque-inspired style, featuring domes, minaret-like towers, and inscriptions in Persian and Pashto. After the 2013 attack, the Christian community rebuilt the church at a cost of 4 million rupees without government assistance.
Peshawar continues to face persistent security challenges. In 2022, Church of Pakistan lay pastor William Siraj was shot dead after Sunday prayers at the same church, while another pastor was injured. In 2016, security forces foiled a suicide attack targeting a Christian neighborhood in the city’s Warsak area.
For survivors and families of victims, the delayed compensation underscores broader concerns about accountability and the protection of minority communities in Pakistan—issues that remain unresolved more than a decade after the tragedy.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from CNA
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