A 38-year-old Afghan woman living in Germany has been stabbed to death by a fellow Afghan asylum seeker, allegedly because she had converted to Christianity.

The victim, known as Farima S, was with two of her four children, sons aged five and 11, when the attack took place near a supermarket in the Bavarian town of Prien am Chiemsee on Saturday.

Her assailant, a 29-year-old man who arrived in Germany from Afghanistan a few years ago, is alleged to have shouted something at his victim in their native tongue before stabbing her repeatedly. He continued to stab her until he was dragged off by a policeman and several passers-by, according to reports.

Farima, who had lived in Germany for six years, later died in hospital from her injuries.

Her sister has alleged that Farima was targeted due to her religion, telling German newspaper Bild: “My sister had to die because she became a Christian.”

Farima had previously received death threats due to her conversion, she added.

But the police have not yet confirmed a motive, and are investigating the relationship between the victim and assailant.

Police spokesman Andreas Guske told Chiemgau24 that the investigation is complicated due to the language barrier.

“In the event of a killing offence, each word must be translated by a certified interpreter, so that it can be regarded as a strong proof,” Guske said.

“For us, only facts count. There is evidence of a religious motive for the deed, which we are pursuing. But this is only one line of enquiry which we are pursuing.

“We are exploring the environments of the victim and the suspect,” Guske added. “Where did they stop, what did they do, which people did they know?”

Investigators are also sure the two knew each other prior to the attack, as “Prien is a village, so one can assume that asylum seekers of one nationality must know each other.”

The 29-year-old has been remanded at a psychiatric ward while the investigation takes place. “The public prosecutor’s office has issued a lodging order, which the responsible detainee has complied with,” Guske said.