Dutch prosecutors are seeking decades-long prison sentences against a Syrian father and his two sons after authorities say the men murdered 18-year-old Ryan Al Najjar because her “Western” behavior brought “shame” to their family.
Al Najjar’s body was discovered on May 28, 2024, submerged in a lake near Joure in northern Netherlands, with her hands and feet bound, six days after she went missing.
Officials arrested her father and two brothers, identified by NL Times as Mohamed and Muhanad, accusing them of carrying out a so-called “honor killing.”
According to prosecutors, the young woman’s own relatives “saw Ryan as a burden that had to be removed,” targeting her “just because she was a young woman who wanted to live her own life.”
Authorities say the men belonged to a “strict” Islamic household and believed Al Najjar was “behaving too Western in the eyes of her family.”
Reports indicate she had refused to wear a headscarf in public settings, and prosecutors pointed to what they described as the immediate trigger for the attack.
“The immediate cause of her death appears to be a live video on TikTok, showing Ryan without a headscarf and wearing makeup,” prosecutors said Friday.
“The video seriously embarrasses the family, according to their posts, as it does not fit within their traditional views.”
Once the video circulated, prosecutors say the brothers sought her out, drove to Rotterdam to find her, and persuaded her to come with them to a remote area the night before the murder. She was allegedly brought to Knardijk, where their father joined them.
“There she was killed,” authorities stated.
Investigators said the location was deliberately chosen to avoid detection.
It was a place “no one for miles around could have heard her” cry for help.
Evidence showed clear signs of strangulation and drowning, and roughly 60 feet of tape had been used to bind her before she was thrown into the water while still alive.
Prosecutors said Khaled’s DNA was found under his daughter’s fingernails, indicating he was involved in the killing.
After the murder, the father fled to Syria, leaving his sons behind to face the charges, prosecutors revealed.
“[Khaled] fled to Syria immediately after the murder and left his sons to take the blame. Cowardly,” the Public Prosecution Service said, adding:
“Khaled has completely destroyed his family.”
The father is also accused of orchestrating the killing.
However, Dutch officials acknowledge that extraditing him will be difficult, particularly after reports that he married a woman in Syria following his daughter’s death.
The Public Prosecution Service is recommending a 25-year sentence for the father and 20 years for each brother.
A verdict is expected on January 5.
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