 Pakistani singer Ayman Udas |
Another name and photograph has been added to an online gallery that honors victims of Islamic “honor killings:” popular Pakistani poet and singer Ayman Udas.
Blogger Pamela Geller at Atlas Shrugs has assembled the gallery to highlight the travesty of women killed by their Islamic relatives for the “honor” of the family.
According to a new report from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Udas was a female vocalist in Peshawar, Pakistan, in the nation’s Northwest Frontier Province, who was shot to death.
The report said musicians and dancers in the region now are terrified because of the death, which came allegedly as a result of the increasing Taliban influence in the region.
Some officials said her death was the result of the actions of Islamic militants, but the Radio Liberty report said her husband told reporters his wife was killed – allegedly by her brothers – for breaking family tradition.
Udas, in her 30s and the mother of two, recently had divorced and remarried. The report said her brothers, Alamgir and Ismail, disapproved of her divorce, her remarriage and her artistic career.
Her death “is absolutely unacceptable,” Ahmad Ali Adil told Radio Liberty. Adil, who is with the University of Peshawar, called the death “a murder of humanity.”
He said other female performers will face similar attacks unless something changes.
Such “honor killings” keep alive an ancient tradition in which Islamic men kill women in their families to “save” the family’s reputation. Udas’ death took place April 27 at the family’s home while her husband was out of the home.
Adil called police but no arrests were made, Radio Liberty said.
At JihadWatch.org, the attack was reported to have happened “either for engaging in the un-Islamic practice of pursuing a singing career, or for engaging in the un-Islamic practice of divorcing and remarrying.”
At the Stop Honour Killings website, a report noted that just months ago, a dancer’s body had been left in the center of Mingora, not far from where Udas grew up. The dancer had been shot, and a note left with the body warned against “un-Islamic voices.”
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WND Staff