A 17-year-old Christian student in Pakistan was reportedly beaten to death by his Muslim classmates because he had drank from the same glass a Muslim had used.

Sharoon Masih was just in his fourth day at his new school in Vehari District in Punjab when the attack occurred on August 29.

A teacher was reported to be in the classroom when the incident unfolded but claims he didn’t see anything because he was reading a newspaper.

In an interview with local media in Pakistan, Sharoon’s mother Razia Bibi said her son was subjected to abuse from the first day.

One Muslim student reportedly told him: “You’re a Christian; don’t dare sit with us if you want to live.”

Bibi said: “My son was a kind-hearted, hard-working and affable boy.

He has always been loved by teachers and pupils alike and shared great sorrow that he was being targeted by students at his new school because of his faith.”

She accused the local police of failing to conduct a proper investigation into the incident.

Meanwhile,  British Pakistani Christians have started an online fundraising initiative to help Sharoon’s family.