Honour killing story: Selda D. (2019)

Selda D.
born: 2000
Murder: July 10, 2019
Residence: Siegburg
Provenance: Victim: Macedonia; Perpetrator: Bulgaria
Children: 2 sons (10 months and 3 years old at the time of the crime), she was pregnant again
Perpetrator: her ex-boyfriend Mehmedali A. (26 years)

Selda is 19 years old, has 2 sons and is pregnant again. It sounds a bit like a forced marriage at the age of 15. Selda is getting a divorce.

On July 10, 2019 Mehmedali wants to pick up his older son (3 years old). In front of the child he stabs his pregnant ex-girlfriend. Then he strangles her in a coma. She suffers from irreparable brain damage and the unborn child dies. The perpetrator drives to a family member in Cologne, where he is arrested.

In January 2020, the perpetrator will be sentenced to life imprisonment for attempted murder by the Bonn Regional Court. Selda is still in a coma and will probably never wake up again. The two children live with Selda's parents.

The name of the perpetrator - Mehmedali - clearly sounds like an Islamic background. The name Selda is probably Turkish.

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.