By Mirwais Bezhan
Self-burning victim in Farah province, Western Afghanistan, July 2007.
A 17-year-old woman fell victim to domestic violence, after she was beaten by her mother-in-law and father-in-law, and burned to death. The incident occurred in Guzargahe Noor district of Baghlan province.
Khadija Yaqeen, head of Women’s Affairs in Baghlan told VOA that the girl was named Hoorjamal, and she was living with her in-laws after her husband travelled to Iran. According to Ms Yaqeen, Hoorjamal’s in-laws tortured her with hot iron rods, and she was finally killed under torture. She said that the incident had occurred the day before and one suspect had been arrested.
According to forensics, Hoorjamal was killed by torture and abuse.
According to the Baghlan police, the victim’s father-in-law had fled after the incident. Yaqeen expressed her concern, stating that the perpetrators had escaped due to the intervention of powerful figures.
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Women’s rights activists in Baghlan have said that the lack of prosecution of perpetrators of domestic violence against women is the reason for the recurrence of such incidents.
Originally published on August 20, 2016