Man forced daughter to wed invoking Saman's fate

(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 26 - A Pakistani man forced his daughter to marry a cousin by threatening her she would otherwise meet the same fate as Saman Abbas, an Italian-Pakistani woman killed by her family for refusing an arranged marriage in Pakistan.
    "If you don't marry (him) you'll end up like Saman," said the 52-year-old man to his 20-something daughter at Novellara near Reggio Emilia in 2021, the same place and year that Saman was killed.
    The man and his 37-year-old wife have now been served restraining orders forcing them to stay away from their daughter, who has left her erstwhile spouse and is living in an undisclosed location.
    Saman's parents were handed life-prison terms by a court in Reggio Emilia a week ago for the honour killing of the 18-year-old Pakistani-Italian near the northern city in 2021.
    The mother, Nazia Shaheen, is a fugitive of Italian justice and was not present at the trial after fleeing to Pakistan following the murder of the young woman after she refused an arranged marriage.
    The father, Shabbar Abbas, had also left the country but was extradited to Italy from Pakistan and is behind bars.
    Saman's uncle, Danish Hasnain, was given a jail term of 14 years for his involvement in the murder. Two of her cousins were acquitted.
    Saman was murdered by her family at Novellara on April 31 2021.
    (ANSA).