A mother and two daughters were allegedly killed by their male relatives in southern Egypt who believed that they had affairs, in the latest apparent example of the so-called "honor killings" in which women are slain for violating traditional morals, a security official said on Friday, as reported by the Associated Press.
Police believed that that 10 men reportedly stormed the house of these women, and began strangling while beating them with sharp tools, based on the alleged confession of one of the suspects - the only one found thus far. The men then wrapped the women's bodies in blankets, weighted them, pelted them with stones, and threw them in the Nile River, an official said.
The suspect said the killings were intended to protect the family's honor.
There remain nine remaining suspects. One woman's body was seen floating on the surface of the Nile near Esna, a town close to the ancient city of Luxor.
"Honor killings" are common in Egypt, especially in the conservative southern region where women are often killed if they are caught in extramarital affairs. For a woman in Egypt, cheating on her husband is against the law, and these perpetrators are prosecuted one they are arrested.
