Ref: 17/2022

Date: 19 February 2022

Time: 09:00 GMT

On Friday, 18 February 2022, N.S.KH (31) was killed after her husband beat her to death in al-Zaytoun neighborhood, southern Gaza City. The man confessed he murdered his wife and is currently in police custody.

According to PCHR investigations, N.S.KH was dead upon arrival at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza at approximately 16:00 on Friday with visible bruises. The forensics report stated that the cause of death was an internal bleeding caused by fractures in the chest.

PCHR data indicates that the victim had died inside her home in al-Zaytoun neighborhood two hours before her transport to the hospital. She was beaten to death by her husband, who is known to have repeatedly assaulted her in the past.

Police spokesperson in Gaza, Ayman al-Batniji, assured our fieldworker that the woman died of an internal bleeding caused by fractures in the chest after being physically assaulted by her husband. The latter is currently in police custody as legal procedures take their course.

This is the first recorded gender-based-violence death case in the occupied Palestinian territory in 2022; PCHR had documented 4 cases of women being murdered by a family member in 2021, including a woman and young girl from the Gaza Strip.

PCHR expresses it deep concern over the growing manifestations of gender-based violence (GBV) and the increase in number of murders against women in the oPt in recent years. PCHR demands deterrent penalties for such crimes, in-line with international law and human rights standards. It is noteworthy that the lenient sentences on GBV cases have encouraged many criminals to use it as a cover-up for their crimes to receive lighter sentences.

PCHR calls upon the Palestinian President to adopt the Domestic Violence Protection Bill into law and to harmonize domestic laws with international conventions; and to fulfill the Palestinian Authority’s obligations under CEDAW and ensure all legislations and laws are consistent with the principle of justice and non-discrimination.