Pakistan detains 13 suspects as ‘honour killing’ video spreads online
Pakistani authorities have arrested at least 13 individuals, including a tribal leader, in connection with the murder of a couple in the southwestern province of Balochistan.
The arrests followed nationwide outrage over a video depicting the murders went viral on social media, with many calling it yet another case of “honour killing” – a phenomenon reported from across South Asia, News.Az reports citing Al Jazeera.
The first information report (FIR) filed by the police on Monday identifies the couple as Bano Bibi and her husband Ehsan Ullah, and says they were likely killed in May near Balochistan’s capital Quetta.
Honour killings, mainly reported from Pakistan and India, often arise from perceived family, tribal or caste dishonour, especially in love marriages, in which the two partners marry without the consent of their families or tribe, or elope. Many such killings go unreported.
Balochistan police official Syed Suboor Agha told Al Jazeera they are investigating the matter and are likely to make more arrests, including Bano’s brother, who is suspected of the murders and “is still at large”.
The viral videos of the killings show a group of armed men gathered around vehicles in a deserted area. Bano is ordered by the crowd to stand away from the vehicles as the couple is pumped with bullets, even on their motionless bodies lying bleeding on the sand.
The FIR names eight suspects while also listing 15 other unidentified suspects involved in the incident.
According to the FIR, the couple was allegedly brought before local tribal leader Sardar Sherbaz Khan, who declared them guilty of engaging in an “immoral relationship” and ordered that they be killed.
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