January 2006

Banaz Mahmoud Bakabir Agha, a 20 year old woman of Kurdish origin was brutally murdered on 23 January 2006 in a so called 'honour' killing; she was murdered by her own relatives, because she wished to remarry after ending her forced marriage by divorce. Her body was found stuffed inside a suitcase buried in a garden in April. Banaz had contacted London Metropolitan Police many times to express her fear of murder, but was sent back into the arms of the family that harmed her. There is even a video recording of Banaz a few weeks before her death in which Banaz states she feared for her life after being harassed by her father.

Through the case hearing, the horrific details of her ordeal have come to light; her parents left her alone in the apartment and gave the go-ahead to a hired thug, her uncle and ex-husband to brutally murder her. She was beaten, raped, stamped on, and strangled with a wire for 4 hours before she finally died.

For more information, see