Jordanian man stabs sister in 'honour' killing

A Jordanian man was charged on Wednesday with killing his divorced sister after stabbing her and driving his truck over her body several times because of her alleged “suspicious behavior,” police said. A source close to the investigation said the man killed his sister by stabbing her 4 times with knife after luring her to a secluded place in Jerash with the promise of money.  After stabbing his sister, he then took her to a deserted area where he repeatedly ran over her body to make sure she was dead. The source added: "after he was sure that she died he hid the knife and surrendered himself to the security center admitting his crime.  He then guided investigators to the place of the body and the murder weapon". A study carried out by the national council for family affairs in Jordan, showed that criminal courts recorded 50 female "honour killing" occurred between 2000 to 2010. The study shows that 56% of victims are aged between18-28 and that 45% of the murderers were from the same age. 42% of those killed are single and 42% are married, while the rest were either divorced or widowed.  56% of the murderers were married and only 56% were employed. The Secretary General of the National Committee for Women Affairs in Jordan Asma Khedr found that there has been a significant reduction in "honour crimes" over the last 3 years. Khedr says the criminals got benefits from remit excuses in the penal code as they were allowed to have reduced penalties. Murder is punishable by death in Jordan, but in so-called “honor killings,” courts can commute or reduce sentences, particularly if the victim's family asks for leniency. On average, there are 20-25 “honour killings” every year.