Lebanon fumes as another woman murdered by husband

BEIRUT — The murder of a 26-year-old woman by her husband in the Choueifat area southeast of Beirut over the weekend sent shockwaves across the country and revived calls to end the rampant violence against women in Lebanon.

In the early hours of Saturday, Hasan Zaiter shot his wife, Zainab, in front of their three children — the oldest being 7. According to Sharika Wa Laken, a local feminist website, Hasan shot his wife in the face with around 10 bullets.

Several reports are circulating about a possible motive. Some claim that Hasan, who reportedly suffers from a neurological disorder, was receiving anonymous calls alleging that his wife was cheating. Other reports claim that he saw pictures online of his wife without a hijab. 

An online video showed the victim’s brother opening his brother-in-law’s cafe in a sign of goodwill. The brother is heard saying he is on good terms with his brother-in-law, who “washed off the shame” his sister caused the family. He said that if Hasan hadn’t killed Zainab, he would have done it himself in order to preserve the family’s honor.

Local reports say police have issued a search warrant for Hasan, who fled the country after the killing, leaving his wife’s bloody body on their bed. A source close to the family told the news website Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that Hasan is believed to have fled to Syria — or possibly Germany, where his brother lives — while his children remain in his hometown of Hadath Baalbeck in eastern Lebanon.

The crime of murdering women in Lebanon largely goes unpunished amid increasing cases of domestic abuse and violence. Domestic violence cases have been on the rise since Lebanon’s economic collapse in 2019, as men who are left jobless take their anger out on their wives. According to the Internal Security Forces (ISF), nine women were killed in domestic violence crimes between January and October 2020 and 18 in 2021. The ISF also reported that it has received 1,468 cases of domestic violence in 2021, up from 747 the previous year.

Last month, a retired police officer shot and killed his ex-wife with a hunting rifle on a street in the northern city of Tripoli in broad daylight. In February 2021, Lebanese model Zeina Kanjo was strangled to death by her husband after he discovered she wanted a divorce. Nine other women were killed by their fiances or husbands in the span of one month between December and January 2018.

In late 2020, Lebanon’s parliament passed a law criminalizing sexual harassment. Another law against domestic violence has been enforced since 2014, but it does not outlaw marital rape. Religious courts in the country remain in charge of personal laws involving matters such as divorce and child custody — in many cases denying women's rights.