Dutch prosecutors are calling for severe prison terms for a father and two sons accused of murdering 18-year-old Ryan Al Najjar in what authorities describe as a brutal, premeditated honor killing.
According to Fox News, Al Najjar’s body was discovered on May 28, 2024, in a lake near Joure in the northern Netherlands.
Her hands and feet were tightly bound, and investigators believe she was thrown into the water alive. The young Syrian woman had been missing for six days.
Prosecutors allege her father and brothers killed her because they believed her “Western” behavior brought shame to their “strict” Islamic family.
“They saw Ryan as a burden that had to be removed,” the Public Prosecution Service said Friday. “Just because she was a young woman who wanted to live her own life.”
Authorities say the immediate trigger was a TikTok livestream showing Al Najjar without a headscarf and wearing makeup.
“The video seriously embarrasses the family, according to their posts, as it does not fit within their traditional views,” prosecutors said.
Once the video surfaced, investigators say her brothers began searching for her. They allegedly visited her in Rotterdam, persuaded her to leave with them, and brought her to Knardijk, a remote area where “no one for miles around could have heard her” cries for help.
Prosecutors say their father joined them there, where the killing occurred on May 22.
Evidence presented in court includes signs of strangulation and drowning, as well as roughly 60 feet of tape used to bind her. Prosecutors also revealed that the father’s DNA was found under her fingernails, indicating he was present and involved.
Local media identified the brothers as Mohamed and Muhanad, and their 53-year-old father as Khaled. All three were charged with murder. Prosecutors said Khaled fled to Syria immediately after the killing.
“[Khaled] fled to Syria immediately after the murder and left his sons to take the blame. Cowardly,” the Public Prosecution Service said. “Khaled has completely destroyed his family.”
Authorities also warned that bringing him back may prove difficult, noting he reportedly married a woman in Syria following his daughter’s death.
Prosecutors are asking for a 25-year sentence for the father and 20 years each for the brothers. The court is expected to deliver its ruling on Jan. 5.
