Pakistan Ulama Council have issued a fatwa against the practice of honour killings, describing it as “unIslamic” and “inhuman” after the murder of Farzana Parveen Iqbal.
The religious edict stated that the “killing of girls in the name of honour or dignity is terrorism and viciousness — which has nothing to do with Islam.”
The umbrella group of scholars added that “The government and judiciary have the responsibility to punish in the harshest possible way those guilty of committing this crime.
“These people are not only guilty of committing murders but also spreading mischief on Earth.”
25-year-old Iqbal was pregnant when she was brutally attacked by over 20 family members, who battered her with bricks outside Lahore High Court.
Her father apparently said to the police: “I killed my daughter as she had insulted all of our family by marrying a man without our consent, and I have no regret over it.”
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has recorded nearly 869 women falling victim to honour based killings in 2013 alone, according to media reports.
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The Pakistan Ulama Council will release a more detailed fatwa on honour killings this Thursday at a conference of leaders from all theological and religious sects.
