Pakistani social media star Qandeel Baloch's brother confesses to killing her for 'honour'

A day after Pakistani model, actress and social media star Qandeel Baloch was killed, her brother admitted to strangling her in their family home in the city of Multan. As Baloch's death sparked a fresh debate on honour killings in the country, police have arrested Muhammad Waseem and plan to charge him with murder.

Waseem, one of Baloch's six brothers told the police that he strangled her after giving her a sedative. He then fled the house, but was later arrested. "Girls are born only to stay at home and to bring honour to the family by following family traditions but Qandeel had never done that," Waseem said. 

Around 1,000 women die every year to due to "honour killings," many of them killed by male relatives for "dishonoring" their family. Several Pakistani activists have asked for the immediate enactment of a stronger law against honour killings. Currently, a legal loophole allows culprits to be acquitted due to a provision that lets relatives of the victim forgive them.

The prevalence of honour killings in the country was also the focus of this year's Oscar-winning documentary A Girl in the River. After the film's win the Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif spoke of the need to change the law on honour killings.

Pakistani police officers present Muhammad Waseem, the brother of slain model Qandeel Baloch, before the media following his arrest at a police station in Multan, Pakistan, Sunday, July 17, 2016.

IMAGE: AP PHOTO/ASIM TANVEER

Baloch, whose real name was Fauzia Azeem, became an Internet sensation over the course of the last year, with a series of photos and videos that challenged conservative norms and drew a large social media following. Last month, she was in the spotlight for her video with Muslim cleric Abdul Qavi, in which she wore his cap and took selfies. 

After the ensuing controversy, Baloch had said she was receiving death threats and sought security from the government. In his statements, Baloch's brother Waseem said that he planned to murder her after her videos with Qavi went viral and was "only waiting for the best moment." 

“I am a drug addict but I was in my senses when I murdered her and I accept it with pride. Now everybody will remember me with honour that I have provided relief to my parents and brothers who were suffering for the last two decades because of her," Waseem said. "I have no regrets."

Baloch also identified herself as a "modern day feminist" and "believed in equality." "As women, we must stand up for ourselves. As women, we must stand up for each other. As women we must stand up for justice," she wrote in a recent Facebook post.

A day before she was killed, Baloch spoke directly to her critics. "No matter how many times I will be pushed down under... but I'm a fighter, I will bounce back," one of her last Facebook posts read. "Qandeel Baloch is a one-woman army. Qandeel Baloch is an inspiration to those ladies who are treated badly and dominated by the society. I will keep on achieving and I know you will keep on hating. Damn, but who cares.