Honour killing story: Zeynep A. and an unborn baby (2012)

Zeynep A. and an unborn baby
born: 1988
strangled: 15 November 2012
Residence: Stade / Lower Saxony
Origin: Turkey / Kurds
Children: 2 sons (3 and 6 years), 1 unborn daughter
Perpetrator: her husband Yildiray A. (36 years)

Zeynep has her first child at the age of 18, three years later her second.

In November 2012 Zeynep is pregnant again. Her husband strangles her. Then he goes to family with one of his sons. His brother finds the body and informs the police. The perpetrator is arrested.

At the moment there's already a case against Yildiray for assaulting another woman. Yildiray had worked as a taxi driver and had tried to rape a woman. Maybe that's why Zeynep wanted to leave him. The trial was scheduled for the day of the crime. Neighbors also report that Yildiray had beaten his wife and children, the boys often walked around with bruises.

The warrant is for manslaughter. In custody, Yildiray takes his own life.

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.