Honour killing story: Lihya (2019)

Lihya
born: 1986
Attempted murder: 20 April 2019
Residence: Marburg
Origin: Syria
Children: 2 sons, 2 daughters (5, 7, 10, 13 years at the time of the crime)
Perpetrator: her husband (44 years)

A Syrian family with 4 children lives in an apartment in Marburg-Cyriaxweimar. On April 20, 2019, the father stabbed his 11 year younger wife in the bathroom. He flees with the children. Neighbors bring the seriously injured woman to the hospital. She undergoes emergency surgery and survives.

The perpetrator is wanted. The next day he is arrested in Schleswig-Holstein. The children are taken care of. The real names are not known.

What is an honour killing?

An honour killing is a murder in the name of honour. If a brother murders his sister to restore family honour, it is an honour killing. According to activists, the most common reasons for honour killings are as the victim:

refuses to cooperate in an arranged marriage.
wants to end the relationship.
was the victim of rape or sexual assault.
was accused of having a sexual relationship outside of marriage.

Human rights activists believe that 100,000 honour killings are carried out every year, most of which are not reported to the authorities and some are even deliberately covered up by the authorities themselves, for example because the perpetrators are good friends with local policemen, officials or politicians. Violence against girls and women remains a serious problem in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Serbia and Turkey.