A court in the capital city of Islamabad on Saturday charged a man with killing 17-year-old TikTok creator Sana Yousaf.
Yousaf, a first-year medical student, was after she reportedly rejected a man’s advances.
What do we know so far?
Islamabad Additional and Sessions Judge Mohammad Afzal Majoka formally indicted 22-year-old Umar Hayat with murder and stealing Yousaf’s phone.
According to AP news agency and Pakistani news outlets, Hayat plead not guilty to all charges against him. According to Pakistani media outlet Dawn, Hayat contended that all accusations against him were “based on falsehood.”
Afzal Majoka adjourned the session, with the next hearing slated for September 25.
Hayat was detained by Islamabad police on June 3, one day after the of Yousaf. It came after Sana Yousaf’s mother, Farzana, contacted the police and said that a man came into her home and shot at her daughter.
Dawn reported that Hayat had confessed the murder to police prior to Saturday’s hearing.
Hayat had reportedly told investigators that he traveled to Islamabad on May 28, one day before Yousaf’s birthday on May 29.
According to the confession, Hayat, who was also active on TikTok, reached out to Yousaf and wanted to meet her.
After she rejected his attempts to meet up, he broke into her home and killed her. He also had reportedly confessed that he stole Yousaf’s phone and erased their conversations together.
Pakistani women outraged by violence
The killing of Yousaf shortly after her birthday sparked outrage in Pakistan and led to protests in Islamabad demanding an end to .
According to the UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency, UNFPA, 28% of women in Pakistan between the ages of 15 to 49 have experienced physical violence, and 6% have experienced sexual violence.
Nonprofit organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), citing human rights defenders, said that roughly 1,000 women due to honor killings every year in Pakistan.
“Violence against women and girls — including rape, murder, acid attack, domestic violence, denial of education, sexual harassment at work, and child and forced marriage — is a serious problem throughout Pakistan, and the government has not taken meaningful steps in report,” HRW said in in its latest rights report on Pakistan.
The killing of Yousaf is only the latest high-profile case of violence against women in Pakistan in recent years.
In 2024, men attempted to cut off 22-year-old Sobia Batool Shah’s legs for seeking a divorce. In 2021, 27-year-old Pakistani-Jordanian woman Noor Mukadam was murdered by a man after she rejected his marriage proposal.
Edited by: Darko Janjevic
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