The Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) has condemned the physical assault of a Christian cleric while in police custody and called on Christians and Muslims across the country to exercise restraint amid growing tensions following a series of religiously sensitive incidents.
The Council described the assault, in which the handcuffed cleric was seen being slapped, as a gross violation of human dignity and the rule of law.
The incident follows an alleged verbal attack on the Prophet Mohammed by the Christian cleric. According to the CCG, a video subsequently emerged showing a Muslim cleric openly inciting violence against individuals who speak against the Prophet.
Both clerics have since been arrested by the Ghana Police Service.
The Council said the subsequent assault of the Christian cleric by an aggrieved individual had further heightened tensions and triggered widespread public concern.
The CCG condemned both the alleged insult against the Prophet Mohammed and the reported incitement to violence in response.
“We must not allow the reckless actions of a few individuals to derail this hard-won religious harmony,” the Council said in a statement issued on Thursday, August 13, 2026.
It urged both Christians and Muslims to exercise “immediate maximum restraint” and refrain from further acts of reprisal, whether online or offline.
The Council noted that Ghana had enjoyed decades of peaceful interfaith coexistence, supported in part by sustained collaboration between Christian and Islamic leaders, particularly the Christian Council and the Office of the National Chief Imam.
It therefore called on the security services to handle all infractions swiftly, impartially and strictly in accordance with the law, without being influenced by religion, creed or public sentiment.
“The state must demonstrate that the law applies equally to all,” the Council stressed.
The CCG cited Article 21(1)(c) of the 1992 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion subject to considerations of public order, as well as Section 207 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), which criminalises conduct or offensive text or behaviour intended to provoke a breach of the peace.
The Council urged the public to allow state institutions to investigate and address the matter without interference, warning against actions that could further inflame tensions between Ghana’s religious communities.
It reaffirmed the need to protect Ghana’s longstanding interfaith harmony and called for calm as the security services deal with the matter.
