Ryan Al Najjar, living in Netherlands, was killed by her father and brothers - a honor killing

 

This is the Netherlands, not the Islamic republic of Iran.

Ryan Al Najjar, an 18-year-old girl with her entire life ahead of her, was kidnapped, tortured, reportedly raped, and brutally executed by her own Syrian-Muslim father and brothers for the “crime” of embracing a Western lifestyle that goes against the teachings of Islam. Her “shameful” offenses? Living freely. Thinking independently. Allegedly losing her virginity before being sold into forced marriage. And when that wasn’t enough—they decided she had to die.

 

Her murder was nothing short of medieval. She was bound with 18 meters of tape, her ankles and wrists tied, her mouth sealed shut, and drowned to death. A cold-blooded execution carried out with full intent. According to the prosecutor, her shoes were removed beforehand, a chilling indication of the premeditated nature of this heinous act.

 

And if the method of murder wasn’t horrifying enough, the family’s digital trail reads like a manifesto of pure evil. Her own father publicly wished for her death, calling for a bullet to her heart and poison in her body. Her mother—her mother—wrote, “God willing, we will see her wrapped in a shroud.” They didn’t just kill her. They dehumanized her. They celebrated her murder.

 

Let that sink in: They cheered for their daughter’s death because she refused to be a prisoner of their archaic, patriarchal nightmare disguised as “honor.”

Where is the global outrage? Where are the protests for Ryan? Why are Western feminists silent when it comes to this kind of oppression? Why are we still tolerating ideologies that turn murder into virtue?

Honor killings are not “cultural.” 

 

They are murder. They are femicide. They are terrorism against women.

Every year, thousands of girls like Ryan are butchered in cold blood—in Iran, in Pakistan, in Afghanistan, in tribal regions of the Middle East and Africa—and now, even in Europe. And far too often, the world looks the other way, afraid to offend, afraid to speak truth.

 

We cannot remain silent. We cannot accept this as “another tragic story.”

This is a war on women. This is a war on freedom. This is a war on basic human dignity.

Ryan Al Najjar’s blood cries out for justice. Let the world hear it. Let her name never be forgotten. And let us never stop demanding that this evil—yes, evil—is exposed, prosecuted and stopped once and for all.