A woman was shot dead allegedly by her brother in a suspected honour killing on Wednesday in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Shangla district, police said.

Khalid shot dead his sister Sadiqeen, 26, after allegedly finding her in an "objectionable position" in a room with a 70-year-old man named Rafiqullah, Station House Officer (SHO) Sher Hassan said.

After killing his sister, a mother of two, Khalid shot dead Rafiqullah as well.

The suspect escaped after committing the crime.

A First Information Report (FIR) has been lodged against Khalid and his cousin, Umar Bacha, the police official said.

Hundreds of women are murdered every year in Pakistan, often by their own relatives, for going against their families' wishes in matters of love and marriage.

The perpetrators of so-called honour killings — in which the victim, normally a woman, is killed by a relative — often walk free because they can seek forgiveness for the crime from another family member.

The Aurat Foundation’s annual report of 2016 showed 7,852 cases of violence against women.

According to Saima Munir, who works for Aurat Foundation, there has been a 70 per cent increase in honour killings in the past year.

Opinion

Editorial

Privatisation divide
Updated 14 May, 2024

Privatisation divide

How this disagreement within the government will sit with the IMF is anybody’s guess.
AJK protests
14 May, 2024

AJK protests

SINCE last week, Azad Jammu & Kashmir has been roiled by protests, fuelled principally by a disconnect between...
Guns and guards
14 May, 2024

Guns and guards

THERE are some flawed aspects to our society that we must start to fix at the grassroots level. One of these is the...
Spending restrictions
Updated 13 May, 2024

Spending restrictions

The country's "recovery" in recent months remains fragile and any shock at this point can mean a relapse.
Climate authority
13 May, 2024

Climate authority

WITH the authorities dragging their feet for seven years on the establishment of a Climate Change Authority and...
Vending organs
13 May, 2024

Vending organs

IN these cash-strapped times, black marketers in the organ trade are returning to rake it in by harvesting the ...