Usually, when we hear about “honor killings,” we’re referring to Muslims who kill family members (almost always women) because they’re dating someone outside the faith.

An Israeli man has been charged with that crime — but this time, he’s Christian and his daughter was dating a Muslim.

Haaretz reports:

Sami Karra allegedly murdered his daughter, Henriette, 17, because he and his family objected to her relationship with a man who was serving time in prison, as well as her plans to convert to Islam for him. Henriette left home two weeks before the June 13 murder after her family used violence and threats to try to end her relationship, according to the indictment. She feared for her life and hid from her family in a number of places, including at the home of her boyfriend’s mother. … On June 13, the day of the murder, Henriette deposited 400 shekels ($113) in her boyfriend’s prison canteen account. When she returned home she told her relative that her boyfriend was getting out of prison at the end of the week and that she intended on converting to Islam. The relative called Henriette’s father and told him of her plans. The father then decided to murder her, according to the indictment. Henriette was found dead in the kitchen of her parent’s home with stab wounds to the neck.

It’s truly disturbing to see the lengths some religious people will go to because their child disagrees with them on matters of faith. It’s not always this extreme, obviously, but it’s not at all unusual to hear stories of parents disowning their kids or trying to punish them in some way because they don’t hold the same beliefs.

I will never understand how murdering your own child is better than watching her convert to another religion. But maybe that’s because my beliefs encourage reason over dogma.

