He was aware of the death threats that had been made against him, but the assassination of Pakistani Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti on March 1st still came as a shock. The Christian was killed after he pushed for reforms to Pakistan's blasphemy law. It's because of that law that a Christian woman, Asia Bibi, is currently facing the death sentence.
It's a topic that has caused outrage in Pakistan and even claimed the life of the Punjab governor. Many Muslims are strongly opposed to proposals that would reform the country's blasphemy law, which carries the death penalty for insulting Islam. Such is the strength of feeling that Governor Salman Taseer was murdered by his bodyguard last week, after he spoke out in support of a Christian woman, Asia Bibi. She's set to become the first woman in Pakistan to be executed for blasphemy.
In November, a Pakistani woman was sentenced to death after being found guilty of blasphemy against Islam. Pressure groups say if executed, she'll be the first woman to be hanged for breaking the controversial law. Some critics of the law also say it's being abused to persecute non-Muslims, who make up just three percent of Pakistan's 167 million population.
FRANCE 24’s correspondent in Pakistan, Anne-Isabelle Tollet, entered the tribal zones situated along the porous border with Afghanistan, where she met a man who said he was active in Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network. Here is her exclusive report.
The Pakistani army says the insurgency in the Swat valley has been quashed. Hundreds of thousands of displaced people are now returning to their valley. But did the army really win this battle against the Taliban?
Anne-Isabelle TOLLET 
