Mother killed son over Koran studies

[Mirza Ghalib]

5 December 2012

Yaseen Ali Ege murder: Mother killed son over Koran studies

A mother who beat her seven-year-old son "like a dog" when he failed to memorise passages of the Koran has been found guilty of his murder.

Sara Ege, 33, beat Yaseen Ege to death at their home in Pontcanna, Cardiff, in July 2010 and set fire to his body.

She was also found guilty of perverting the course of justice at Cardiff Crown Court. Sentence was adjourned.

The boy's father, Yousuf Ege, 38, was acquitted of causing Yaseen's death by failing to protect him.

It was initially thought Yaseen had died in the blaze at the family home but tests later revealed he had died hours earlier.

His mother had pleaded not guilty to his murder and claimed her husband was responsible for Yaseen's death.

She said she feared her husband would kill her and target her family unless she confessed to the murder.

That confession - made to police days after the death of her son - was captured on video and played to the jury during the five week trial.

During the hour-long harrowing footage, university graduate Ege described how the young boy collapsed after she had beaten him while still murmuring extracts of the Koran.

"He was breathing as if he was asleep when I left him," she said.

"He was still murmuring the same thing over and over again. I thought that he was just tired."

When she returned 10 minutes later she found her son shaking and shivering on the floor. He then died.

Within moments she said she decided to burn his body and ran downstairs to get a lighter and a bottle of barbecue gel.

'He never complained'
In police interviews she also confessed to beating her son for no reason and that her anger often led to her being out of control.

She and her taxi driver husband had enrolled Yaseen in advanced classes at their local mosque as they wanted him to become Hafiz - an Islamic term for someone who memorises the Koran.

The court heard Ege become more and more frustrated with her son's inability to learn the passages he needed to.

She told officers: "I was getting all this bad stuff in my head, like I couldn't concentrate, I was getting angry too much, I would shout at Yaseen all the time.

"I was getting very wild and I hit Yaseen with a stick on his back like a dog."

She later retracted her statement.

'Suffered terribly'
The prosecution said that Yaseen suffered significant abdominal injuries that were the cause of his death.

They included fractures which were non-accidental. He also had numerous historical injuries.

"Sara Ege made no attempt to seek the medical attention he so obviously needed," prosecutor Ian Murphy said.

"He clearly suffered terribly. She started the fire to hide what she had done."

However, Ege insisted that both she and Yaseen had been beaten by her husband, adding he had been violent throughout their marriage.

She told the jury that she did not take the boy to the doctor because she feared for her safety and that social services would take her son away.

Her mother Nafees Ahmed also gave evidence to say that Ege was a good mother who looked after her son well.

Ege was found guilty of murder and perverting the course of justice by burning Yaseen's body.

Her husband was cleared of causing or allowing the death of a child by failing to protect him.

The jury returned unanimous verdicts after eight hours of deliberation.

'Deeply tragic'
As the verdict was read out Ege broke down in the dock, holding her head in her hands and crying.

Judge Mr Justice Wyn Williams told her she faces a term of life imprisonment.

He added that he would determine a minimum sentence for her in the New Year after a medical report had been completed.

Her husband showed no emotion as he walked free from court.

Speaking after the verdicts, Deborah Rogers, district crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, said the "deeply tragic nature" of the case had been "all too apparent".

"We should not forget that at the heart of the case is the loss of a bright and friendly young boy who had his whole life ahead of him," she added.

"It is therefore right that the circumstances of Yaseen's death were fully examined in a criminal court."

[Mirza Ghalib]

This is a very tragic tale, and it does make one wonder what the world is all about. A mentally ill mother, a father out of it all and a seven-year old succumbing to the whims of uncontrollable rage and indifference. Is this even about religion, one might ask? The anwer might well be no. Can the flaws of the human being be laid on the divine door? Our answers will be varied as we human beings are varied. All one can repeat is it was and is a tragedy. May the little one rest in peace.

[resurrected]

It's sad that such disturbing news never end. It has little to do with our religion but to insanity, cruelty and uncontrolled anger that dominats our national body. These vices have been making us one of the most violent epople on face of earth and yet so little is done to address these psycholigal disorders.
I'm certain that this mindset can find some release if enough attention is paid to the problems. I'm also sure that the lady in question herself wouldn't be able to swear that she understood the simple message of Quran, let alone her demand from barely a child of so young age. I join you in your pray but also demand that we do something to educate these simple but foolish people, who believe that they can serve God by their Evil acts!

[Mirza Ghalib]

But how to make people understand the essence of their faith? Yasmin Ali Ege was living abroad. There we have social workers and the like. Even they did not spot anything untoward. In Pakistan itself, who would step in to intervene either? We can blame it on the mullahs once again. But if so, reforming them is a very hard task to take on, requiring a lot of plain legislation. When will such a thing come about, I can't imagine. So meanwhile we just smile and bear it and, when no one's looking, a tear may slip down our faces for the lost life of a pathetic seven-year old. Mrs Ege - a university graduate did you notice? - should have been hospitalised, our husband handed over to a psychiatrist and the mullah in charge of young Yaseen should have been arrested on charges of grievous negligence. So his mother has been convicted. Justice is done as we like it. And yet Yaseen will never return to our midst.

[resurrected]

Nothing is strange about the family living in the west as the place of our domicile can't change our upbringing and state of mind. The people cut off from there roots feel more threatened by alien traditions, norms and so called freer societies and thus get more defensive. You are absolutely right that there is little one can do in short term but there could be some long term solutions, if we start the process of educating the masses. By that I don't mean collage or university degrees but educating them in ethics, morals and other universal principles, all present in our religion as well. The woman regardless of her higher education had remained illiterate in the basic truths taught by our religion. None gave her the right to take life of any, regardless of her relation to the victim.

[stingingnettle]

In my opinion, this is what happens when words lose the message, when rituals replace faith and when form takes over substance. I am not sure if I understand what virtue there is in making a seven year old memorise a book that he is unlikely to understand for many many years. An unexamined life, lived in the thick haze of ritual and incomprehension, will only lead to violence against those that need our love and protection the most.

Neo Mullahism has a lot to answer for.

[resurrected]

It's exactly that what happens when spirit is lost to the form and rituals. Our spiritual growth is not connected to our blind devotion to words we fail to even understand. Who will teach us that we aren't talking of some magical formulas, mantrum but holy words of divine with a message to the worlds.

[stingingnettle]

This is why asking good questions is always a sign of development in any society. It is obvious that we treat questions as threat unless the question is about an answer we already know.

Any chance of promoting a culture that encourages critical thinking and questioning?