Muslim convert slain in J&K

A Muslim convert, Bashir Ahmed Tantray, has been shot dead by Islamic militants in Mamoosa Pattan in Baramullah district of Jammu Kashmir state in the morning of November 21, 2006, Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) has reported.

"Bashir was a government employee whose Christian identiy was well known in the area and his name had featured in numerous media reports in the region," EFI said.

According to regional sources, the funeral was held later in the day which was attended by only a few Christians, as a majority kept away fearing futher attacks.

The killing has fuelled new fear in the heart of the Christian minority in the state.

Bashir, 50, is survived by his wife and four children.

EFI has mourned the death of Bashir and has urged Christians to pray for the family in their time of grief.