Sharp increase recorded in number of honor killings
“An insane increase in the number of femicide cases in Palestinian society from the beginning of this year until Sept. 22, 2013. The Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counselling has recorded 25 cases of femicide for various motives in the [West] Bank and Gaza Strip… This number is the double that of the figure recorded in 2012, when 13 women were murdered – a figure [3] times greater than [that recorded in] 2011, when 4 women were murdered…
The Women’s Center said femicide is a crime for which the perpetrators must receive the most serious penalties, regardless of the identity or gender of the criminal and the motives behind the crime. [The Center added that] as of today, there can be no further discussion regarding the context to acts of femicide, since women are murdered for being women, while the male criminals are rewarded for being men. They receive an exemption or a more lenient punishment because the victim was a woman.”
The Women’s Center said femicide is a crime for which the perpetrators must receive the most serious penalties, regardless of the identity or gender of the criminal and the motives behind the crime. [The Center added that] as of today, there can be no further discussion regarding the context to acts of femicide, since women are murdered for being women, while the male criminals are rewarded for being men. They receive an exemption or a more lenient punishment because the victim was a woman.”