--- description: Toxic alcohol consumed by Christians in a small town in Pakistan to celebrate Christmas is responsible for at least 31 deaths title: Toxic Alcohol Kills 31 People Celebrating Christmas in Pakistan image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81ebdf32184cce06/6988b4085f570f6850b23a46/pakistan-christians-alcohol.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Pakistan](/tag/pakistan/) ## Pakistan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Toxic Alcohol Kills 31 People Celebrating Christmas in Pakistan  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Dec 27, 2016 5:00 PM CUT  Pakistani Christians carry a coffin for one of the victims who was killed by toxic liquor on Christmas Eve in a Christian colony in Toba Tek Singh, some 338 km south of Islamabad on Dec. 27. Pakistani Christians carry a coffin for one of the victims who was killed by toxic liquor on Christmas Eve in a Christian colony in Toba Tek Singh, some 338 km south of Islamabad on Dec. 27.STR—AFP/Getty Images  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Dec 27, 2016 5:00 PM CUT Toxic alcohol consumed by Christians in a small town in Pakistan to celebrate Christmas is [responsible for at least 31 deaths](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/4183ed09fb4a4ab9bf9c5d29f0cd81ba/death-toll-using-toxic-liquor-jumps-27-pakistan "undefined"), according to reports. Dozens more people got sick in the incident in the small city of Toba Tek Singh, located in the northeastern part of the country, according to the Associated Press and the [New York _Times_](http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/27/world/asia/christians-pakistan-alcohol-christmas.html? "undefined"). Pakistan maintains tight restrictions on the consumption of alcohol, but allows the practice for non-Muslims. Still, many Christians in the country cannot afford properly produced goods and instead rely on homemade alcohol. The regional government has launched an investigation into the incident, according to the _Times_. Several [similar](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35872408 "undefined") incidents of tainted alcohol in the country have left dozens dead. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4618384/pakistan-christians-alcohol-christmas/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4618384/pakistan-christians-alcohol-christmas/"},"headline":"Toxic Alcohol Kills 31 People Celebrating Christmas in Pakistan","datePublished":"2016-12-27T17:00:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T02:28:38.501Z","description":"Many Christians in the country rely on homemade alcohol","url":"https://time.com/4618384/pakistan-christians-alcohol-christmas/","keywords":["Pakistan","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81ebdf32184cce06/6988b4085f570f6850b23a46/pakistan-christians-alcohol.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Justin Worland","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/justin-worland/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81ebdf32184cce06/6988b4085f570f6850b23a46/pakistan-christians-alcohol.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Pakistan Christians alcohol","caption":"Pakistan Christians alcohol","creditText":"STR—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/pakistan/","name":"Pakistan"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4618384/pakistan-christians-alcohol-christmas/","name":"Toxic Alcohol Kills 31 People Celebrating Christmas in Pakistan"}}]}] ```