Two brothers in northern India beheaded their teenage sister and carried her head through their village for having an affair with a cousin.

Police say that after beheading their 17-year-old sister late Monday, the brothers left her body in the street and walked away with the decapitated head.

Officers have been unable to find the two brothers. Their ages were not clear, but they were both older than their sister.

Officer Rajesh Singh said that at least a dozen people watched as the sister was dragged out of the house, beaten and beheaded, but that they did not inform the police. The crime was reported by a local security guard.

Honour killings are common across India, but such brutal deaths are extremely rare.