The brother of Pakistani model and social media star, Qandeel Baloch, said he's proud to have killed his 26-year-old sister, because "girls are born to stay home" and he was embarrassed by her social media posts. Baloch's brother, Waseem Azeem, 25, filmed a confession video, in which he expressed no remorse. Waseem said killing his sister brought honor to his family and earned him a place "in heaven."
For background, read The Gospel Herald July 18 article about Baloch's murder: Pakistani Model Quandell Baloch 'Honor Killed' by Her Brother Over Facebook Postings
"Girls are born to follow traditions. My sister never did that," Azeem said in the video, according to GodReports.
"I am proud of what I did. I drugged her first, then I killed her. She was bringing dishonor to our family," he said, adding that killing his sister was a better alternative than killing himself.
Baloch had nearly 750,000 followers on Facebook, according to CNN. Baloch, whose real name was Fauzia Azeem, was buried Sunday, July 17.
After Azeem was arrested, he confessed to killing her, according to Fox News. He said people had taunted him over her social media posts, and he found the resulting embarrassment "unbearable."
The popular online celebrity was found dead July 16 at her family home in Multan. The young model gained attention through social media postings that were considered provocative in deeply conservative Pakistan, but might earn a PG-rating in America, states GodReports.
Baloch stirred controversy by posting pictures online taken with a prominent Muslim cleric, Mufti Abdul Qavi, earlier this month, in a Karachi hotel room during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. In one picture, she is wearing the cleric's trademark fur-lined hat. Qavi maintained he only met with her to discuss the teachings of Islam. But the government suspended Qavi and removed him from the official moon-sighting committee that determines when Ramadan starts and ends in accordance with the Islamic lunar calendar.
Waseem reportedly said this particular controversy with Qavi was "the end of it," according to CNN."I planned this after her scandal with the mufti and was waiting for the right time," he said.
Qandeel's mother accused the cleric of provoking her son to murder. She claims Waseem carried out the killing on the cleric's advice, according to Pakistan's Geo News. Multan's chief of police told CNN they decided to include Mufti Qavi in Qandeel's murder investigation.
Pakistan's Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif spoke out against honor killing. "There is no honor in honor killing, in fact there can be nothing more degrading than to engage in brutal murder and to refer to it as honor," he said in a press statement six months ago.
