Early this morning, in the Venlo (Netherlands) neighborhood of Blerick, a 14-year-old girl, identified only as Nour, was found stabbed to death in her home. Her father, not further identified, is under arrest. Two other females were in the house, and their status is not clear. One of the females may be the wife or partner of the father, and may or may not be the girl's mother. Some sources are reporting that both the father and the mother are in custody.
At this point, it is only speculation, and we will follow this story. It seems, however, to be entirely possible, based on the details below, that this is an honor killing, but let's see how this plays out.
The article below in Algemeen Dagblad is translated by Fousesquawk.
Schoolgirl (14) stabbed to death was "caring and sweet", father's colleague says "everything was normal the day before"
The violent death of 14-year-old Nour has shocked Blerick, Limburg. The girl was stabbed to death in her home early Monday morning, after which her father and his partner were arrested. At her middle school and in the neighborhood, the grief is overwhelming. "She was the sweetest girl I know".
-By Sebastian Quekel, Raymond Boere, and Luciano de Graaf
Police responded to a stabbing in the Venlo neighborhood about 6:30 am. Emergency services found the teenager seriously wounded, but they were unable to save her.
Shortly thereafter, two residents of the place were arrested. What took place before the tragedy is still under investigation.
A mother from the neighborhood was awakened by the trauma helicopter that was circling over the houses. Her son was a classmate of Nour for years. "Shortly afterward, I heard that it was about Nour. I was completely in shock, just like all the parents."
"I never heard them screaming"
A neighbor living across the street was awakened by the emergency personnel trying to save Nour's life. A bit later, she saw her father taken out of the house in handcuffs.
According to this eyewitness, two other women had to go to the police headquarters. "This comes as a total surprise to us. I have never noticed anything going on in the family. I have never heard them screaming or anything. That makes it even more tragic," says this woman.
The daughter of this neighbor across the street is a schoolmate of the victim in middle school. She got the news from her counselor, after which classes were interrupted. "Everyone was crying. Me too because I also knew her". Now she is walking around the neighborhood with her mother to have some distraction. "She was such a happy girl. She was always laughing, and I never saw her angry."
Teacher in tears
At the Blaria College, Nour's middle school, the shock hit hard. Some of the pupils were immediately sent home, and a memorial place was set up.
The school administration is "enormously impacted" and is offering emotional support where needed. "This is naturally a topic of discussion. We are following this quite closely," said a spokesperson. Parents are being allowed to pick their children up under supervision.
A friend of the arrested woman, whose son also goes to Nour's school, sees the sadness all around her. "For my children, she was really a sweetheart of a girl. We are all devastated," she says, audibly shaken.
"Really a caring girl"
Her son says that even the teachers could not hide their tears at school. Nour was also very much loved by them as well. "My son now sits and watches videos all the time, in which they sat and laughed together. It is incomprehensible that she is no more and can only be seen again in these kinds of images."
The cheerful girl was known in the neighborhood as social and caring. She often acted as a peacemaker on the street. "If there were problems, she always tried to solve them. She was such a sweet girl," sighs the girlfriend. "Really a caring girl. Outside, she always gave hugs to everyone."
Known hairdresser
The father, who, aside from Nour, has at least two other children, is no stranger in Blerick.The man has a hair salon in the shopping center around the corner from where the tragedy played out.
While the police are conducting a full investigation in the residence, Mohammed, a colleague, stands in the shop with a lump in his throat. For three years, he has been co-owner of the hair salon of the father, who is now under arrest.
On Monday morning, he heard the news from the neighbors. "I just can't understand it," he stammers in broken Dutch. Yesterday, we were just working together till 4:30. Everything was normal, just like any other day."
"She was part of the family here"
His colleague's daughter was a familiar face in the hair salon. After school, she would often come on her bike to visit her father. "A very nice and quiet girl,' remembers Mohammed. "She came just to say hello, sat with her phone, or chatted with her father. She was part of the family here."
Mohammed has no idea how it went so terribly wrong in the family. They do not speak about each other's private lives. "We talked about work, about the clients. What happened behind closed doors, I don't know."
"Cut hair with the best"
The father and his sons are extremely good in the hair-cutting trade, says the female friend of the arrested woman. "They can cut hair with the best, (and) his sons are even a bit better than he himself. I know nothing about the father, except that he could be very strict. But that things were so wrong, I had no idea."
She has a close bond with the female suspect. "We are very close. Her heart is really in the right place, that I swear. Just a very sweet woman." The friend sighs and wipes her tears away. "I still cannot comprehend it." A female neighbor confirms that image with RTL News. "I really never expected this from these nice people."
That there is online speculation about a motive and the family situation greatly affects the friend. " I am really disgusted by the unverified things people are posting on Facebook. They know absolutely nothing about how these people are. The reports have to stop."
Old wounds
The fatal incident is opening old wounds in the neighborhood. In 2017, Blerick was in the news for months due to disturbances and two deadly shootings. The Venlo municipality subsequently invested heavily in safety and new construction.
"After that, things stayed quiet for years, until this morning," a neighbor a few doors down the street responds.
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