April 13, 2010
Woman Killed By Unknown Persons in Beit Lahia to “Maintain Family Honor”
Woman Killed By Unknown Persons in Beit Lahia to “Maintain Family Honor”

Field Update

 

On Monday, 12 April 2010, Sherin Zayed (al-‘Attar), from
Beit Lahia town in the northern the Gaza Strip, was killed allegedly to
“maintain family honor.”

 

According to the field follow-up of the Palestinian Centre
for Human Rights (PCHR), at approximately 11:50 on Monday, 12 April 2010, the
body of Sherin Khamis Zayed (al-‘Attar), 32, was brought to Martyr Kamal ‘Edwan
Hospital in Beit Lahia, as she was hit by several bullets to the head and the
chest. The chief of police in Beit Lahia
town, Sameh al-Sultan, told a PCHR fieldworker that the police opened an
investigation into the incident and arrested a number of the victim’s
relatives, including her father. The
father told the police that five masked gunmen raided his house on Monday
morning and pulled his daughter outside the house and fired at her. Data provided by the police indicates that
this crime was committed allegedly to “maintain family honor.”

 

PCHR strongly condemns this crime, and:

 

1. Expresses concern over the recurrence of murders
against women in the Occupied Palestinian Territory allegedly “to maintain
family honor.” Such recurrence may be attributed to the relative impunity
granted to murderers, who are often sentenced to less than 3 civil years of
imprisonment, equivalent to 24 months of effective imprisonment.

2. Calls for suitable deterrent penalties to be applied
to “family honor” murders.  These murders must be dealt with in
the same manner as other crimes of willful killing, taking into consideration
international human rights standards. Many murderers use the claim of
maintaining family honor as a justification for the crimes they commit in order
to benefit from more lenient sentences.