Honour killing story: Saskia Mohs (1998)

Saskia Mohs
born 1978
Strangled: 6 August 1998
Residence: Berlin-Lichtenberg
Origin: victim: Germany; perpetrator: Palestinian / Lebanon
Children: she was pregnant
Perpetrator: her boyfriend Fadi al Hudeiri (age 22 at the time of the crime)

Saskia is 20 years old and pregnant. The father of the unborn child is believed to be her boyfriend Fadi, a stateless Palestinian from Lebanon. On August 6, 1998, he strangled her. For this, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison by the Berlin District Court. When he was released he "forced" another woman (Ramona, 28) to marry him. He beat her, she sued him. For this he was sentenced to another 5 months in prison.

Fadi then goes to live with Raja in Bielefeld, whom he strangles in May 2014. For this, the Bielefeld Regional Court gives him a 13-year prison sentence with subsequent preventive detention.

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.