Samia Shahid 'honour killing': Arrest warrants for mother and sister

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Samia ShahidImage source, Family photo
Image caption,

Samia Shahid died while visiting relatives in Pandori in northern Punjab

Arrest warrants have been issued for the mother and sister of a woman believed to have been the victim of a so-called "honour killing".

Samia Shahid, 28, from Bradford, died in Pakistan in July. Her father and first husband have been held in connection with her death.

Her mother, Imtiaz BiBi, and sister, Madiha Shahid have been declared proclaimed offenders in Pakistan.

A judge issued arrest warrants when they did not appear in court earlier.

Declaring the women proclaimed offenders means the police believe they were involved in Ms Shahid's death and wish to question them.

Both her father and first husband appeared at the court hearing in Jhelum, in the northern Punjab province, where the case was adjourned until 11 November.

Chaudhry Muhammad Shakeel is accused of her murder while her father Chaudhry Muhammad Shahid is being held as a suspected accessory.

Neither have been formally charged but their lawyers have previously argued there is no evidence against them.

Image source, AP
Image caption,

Chaudhry Muhammad Shakeel and Chaudhry Muhammad Shahid have been held in connection with Ms Shahid's death

The men's legal team asked the court to wait for the High Court in Lahore to decide on a petition lodged by Ms Shahid's second husband, Syed Mukhtar Kazim, for the case to be moved from Jhelum.

The High Court is expected to rule on that petition on 24 November but the judge in Jhelum said the court would continue to pursue the matter as no order to stay proceedings had been received.

Ms Shahid, a beautician, married Mr Kazim in Leeds in 2014 and the couple moved to Dubai.

Mr Kazim has claimed his wife, who died while visiting relatives in Pakistan, was killed because her family disapproved of their marriage.

Initially it was claimed she had died of a heart attack but a post-mortem examination confirmed she had been strangled.