Latest news with #southernPakistan
New York Times
06-08-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Another Pakistani Woman Is Killed for ‘Honor,' but She's Not Forgotten
The woman took her final steps on the open desert terrain in southern Pakistan and stopped, turning her back to her executioner as he raised his gun. 'You can shoot me,' said Bano Bibi, 35, her beige shawl fluttering in the wind. 'But nothing more than that.' The man shot Ms. Bibi three times, killing her on the spot over accusations that the mother of five was having an affair. Then he turned to the man accused of being her lover, Ehsanullah Samalani, a 50-year-old father of four, and shot him dead as well. The double execution has shocked many Pakistanis, sparked protests and drawn widespread condemnation from politicians. It caused outrage not just because it was another so-called honor killing in Pakistan — where, on average, more than one woman is slain every day for supposedly dishonoring her family — but because the authorities took action only after a video of the shootings went viral, more than six weeks later. 'Many communities and families insist that their misplaced sense of 'honor' is located in a woman's body and actions,' said Sherry Rehman, a senator who introduced a resolution calling for the prosecution of those involved in the killings of Ms. Bibi and Mr. Samalani. Ms. Rehman said perpetrators were emboldened by the low rate of prosecutions for such killings. 'That is also why control over a woman's actions and rights find so many colluders across the board in keeping heinous customs like this alive,' she said in a written response to questions. Politicians and law enforcement officials in this Muslim nation of more than 240 million people have long vowed to do more to protect women. They have repeatedly promised to take action against perpetrators of killings like these, which are carried out in the name of centuries-old traditions. But Ms. Bibi's death, her defiant last words and the impunity enjoyed for weeks by those who ordered her death have yet again cast doubt on Pakistani officials' ability, or will, to tackle one of the country's most persistent and egregious forms of violence. In the video, male onlookers can be seen watching in silence, neither moving nor trying to intervene, some of them filming the execution with their smartphones. Late last month, the police opened an investigation into the killings, which took place in early June. More than 15 people were arrested within days. Among them was Ms. Bibi's mother, who, in a video recorded before her arrest, had said that the killing 'had to be done' and 'was necessary to cleanse our family's honor.' 'It's mostly victim blaming, where the killer will say, 'She dishonored our family,'' said Sheema Kermani, a classical dancer and women's rights activist who co-founded Aurat March, a leading feminist movement in Pakistan. 'But there is no honor in these killings. They are dishonorable murders.' At least 405 women were victims of so-called 'honor killings' last year, according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, an independent rights group. They often take place in rural areas, where deeply entrenched patriarchal beliefs are used to justify violence against women. The killing of Ms. Bibi and Mr. Samalani was one of those, carried out on the outskirts of Quetta, a city in the southern province of Balochistan. But such killings happen in all economic classes and across the country, including in large cities, and even among Pakistan's diaspora. In January, a man lured his 14-year-old daughter, who was living in New York, back to Pakistan and killed her because of her lifestyle, including the clothing she wore. There are several laws against gender-based violence in Pakistan, but killings like these often go unreported or unpunished, as a centuries-old tribal code trumps civil law in vast swathes of the country. In such cases, decisions made at local council meetings, known as jirgas, prevail over Pakistan's courts. Often, relatives — a father, a brother, an uncle — will kill women for refusing a forced marriage, seeking a divorce or engaging in relationships that the men see as violating their culture's values. According to the Sustainable Social Development Organization, a Pakistani nonprofit, such killings led to criminal convictions in just 0.5 percent of all reported cases last year. A 2016 law, meant to ensure that more perpetrators were punished, made it impossible for the victim's family to pardon the accused in such cases, among other measures. But the killings continued and even increased in number over the past few years, said Farah Zia, director of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Her organization uses data provided by the police, and she said the real toll was likely to be much higher. 'The law hasn't come to the rescue to mitigate these crimes,' Ms. Zia said. 'Incidents every now and then get traction in the media, but it continues in a shameful way.' In recent weeks, the police arrested the father and brother of an 18-year-old woman who was found dead after escaping a forced marriage in Rawalpindi, 20 miles from the capital, Islamabad. In Pakistan's south, an 80-year-old man confessed to murdering his 23-year-old granddaughter, with the help of his son and his brother, in the name of 'honor' because, he said, she had left home after refusing an arranged marriage. In early June, Ms. Bibi and Mr. Samalani were brought before a local tribal leader in Balochistan, who declared that they had committed an act of dishonor and ordered their execution, according to a police report seen by The New York Times. The authorities have since charged the tribal leader and 15 other people with premeditated murder. They were also charged with terrorism, on the grounds that they had tried to incite fear and panic by posting the video. The man who is seen shooting Ms. Bibi and Mr. Samalani in the video was still at large as of Tuesday. So was Ms. Bibi's brother, who can be seen among the people watching the execution. Ms. Kermani, the activist, said, 'That video sends a chilling message that says, 'Don't let any women dare decide for their own life, because that is what we will do to them.''
Free Malaysia Today
03-06-2025
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
More than 200 prisoners break out of Pakistani jail after quake panic
The inmates overpowered prison guards after being allowed to leave their cells following a series of tremors. (EPA Images pic) KARACHI : More than 200 inmates escaped from a jail in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi late yesterday when they overpowered prison guards after being allowed to leave their cells following a series of earthquakes, local officials and police said. The jailbreak began just before midnight and continued into the early hours of today after hundreds of prisoners were allowed into the courtyard of the District Malir prison because of the tremors, Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar, the provincial law minister, told reporters at the scene today. Police said the prisoners snatched guns from prison staff and forced open the main gate after a shootout, evading paramilitary soldiers. At least one prisoner was killed and three guards wounded, said provincial police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon. 'I heard the firing for quite some time and then some time later prisoners made their way out running in all directions,' Bukhsh, a private security guard at a residential complex opposite the jail who goes by a single name, told Reuters. He added that some of the prisoners entered the apartment complex before being taken away by police. Today, a Reuters reporter who visited the prison saw shattered glass and damaged electronic equipment. A meeting room, for prisoners to see their families, had been ransacked. Anxious family members had gathered outside. The jailbreak was one of the largest ever in Pakistan, Lanjar said. The prison, which houses 6,000 inmates, is in the Malir district of Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city. Prisoners ran through the area throughout the night, some of them barefoot, with police giving chase, local TV footage showed. About 80 of those who escaped had been caught, said Murad Ali Shah, the provincial chief minister. The jail's superintendent, Arshad Shah, told reporters that there were 28 prison guards on duty at night, and that 'only a few of such a large number of prisoners escaped'. He said the prison did not have security cameras. Officials said the inmates, many of them heroin users, had been unnerved by the earthquakes. 'There was panic here because of earthquake tremors,' said Lanjar. The provincial chief minister said it was a mistake for prison authorities to have allowed the prisoners to leave their cells. He urged the inmates still at large to hand themselves in, or face a serious charge for breaking out. 'Petty crime charges will become a big case like terrorism,' Shah said.
The Herald
03-06-2025
- General
- The Herald
Over 200 prisoners break out of Pakistani jail after earthquake panic, says official
Over 200 prisoners escaped in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi late on Monday after they were permitted to leave their cells following a series of earthquake tremors, local officials and police said. Hundreds of prisoners were allowed into the courtyard of the jail due to the tremors, Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar, the provincial law minister, told reporters at the scene. "There was panic here because of earthquake tremors," said Lanjar, adding that it was hard to control a throng of up to 1,000 people. The jailbreak began just before midnight on Monday and carried on till the early hours of Tuesday, he said. Police said the prisoners snatched guns from prison staff, leading to a shootout, and then forced open the main gate. On Tuesday, a Reuters reporter at the site saw shattered glass and damaged electronic equipment inside the jail. A meeting room, for prisoners to see their families, had been ransacked. Anxious family members gathered outside the jail on Tuesday. It was one of the largest jailbreaks ever in Pakistan, Lanjar said. The prison in the Malir district of Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city, is in a poor residential and industrial neighbourhood. Prisoners ran through the area through the night, some barefoot, chased by police, with police managing to round some up into police vans, local TV footage showed. Provincial police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon said that most of the inmates had been involved in small-time crimes like drug addiction. At least one prisoner was killed in the shooting, which also wounded three prison staff, he said. Murad Ali Shah, the provincial chief minister, said that around 80 prisoners had so far been caught, adding that it was a mistake for the prison authorities to have allowed the inmates out of their cells. He warned those still at large to hand themselves in, or face a serious charge for breaking out. "Petty crime charges will become a big case like terrorism," Shah said. Reuters
South China Morning Post
03-06-2025
- Climate
- South China Morning Post
Hundreds of inmates escape jail in Pakistan after earthquake panic
Over 200 prisoners escaped in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi late on Monday after they were permitted to leave their cells following a series of earthquake tremors, local officials and police said. Advertisement Hundreds of prisoners were allowed into the courtyard of the jail due to the tremors, Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar, the provincial law minister, told reporters at the scene. 'There was panic here because of earthquake tremors,' said Lanjar, adding that it was hard to control a throng of up to 1,000 people. The jailbreak began just before midnight on Monday and carried on till the early hours of Tuesday, he said. Police officers and paramilitary soldiers stand guard outside the district Malir prison. Photo: AP Police said the prisoners snatched guns from prison staff, leading to a shoot-out, and then forced open the main gate. Advertisement
Al Bawaba
19-05-2025
- Al Bawaba
At least 4 killed in bomb explosion in Pakistan
Published May 19th, 2025 - 09:04 GMT ALBAWABA - At least four were killed and 12 others were injured in a bomb explosion in the province of Balochistan in southern Pakistan, a security official said Monday, as reported by AFP. An improvised explosive device (IED) was placed in a parked car in the Killa Abdullah district of Balochistan. "It seems the IED exploded before reaching its intended destination," a local security official, Ghulab Khan, told AFP. "All those killed are civilian passersby," he further mentioned. Riaz Khan Dawar, a senior local government official, also told the news outlet that the blast happened near a paramilitary compound on Sunday evening. © 2000 - 2025 Al Bawaba (
