Qandeel Baloch News

Qandeel Baloch (Urdu: قندیل بلوچ‎); March 1, 1990 – July 15, 2016), born Fouzia Azeem (Urdu: فوزیہ عظیم‎), was a Pakistani model, actress, feminist activist and social media celebrity. Baloch rose to prominence due to her videos discussing her daily routine and various controversial issues.[1]

Baloch first received recognition from the media in 2013, when she auditioned for Pakistan Idol; her audition went viral and she became an Internet celebrity.[2][3] She was one of the top 10 most searched people in Pakistan and both celebrated and criticised for the content of her videos and posts.[4]

During the evening of July 15, 2016, Baloch was asphyxiated while she was asleep in her parents' house in Multan.[5][6] Her brother Waseem confessed to the murder saying she was "bringing disrepute" to the "family's honour".[7][8][9]

Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Career
2.1 Security concerns
3 Personal life
4 Death
4.1 Reactions
5 References
6 External links
Early life
Baloch was born on 1 March 1990 in the small, conservative town of Shah Sadar Din in Dera Ghazi Khan in Punjab.[10] She had six brothers and six sisters. Her first job was as a bus hostess.[11]

Career
Baloch's fame was based on her social media posts – pictures, videos and comments. These were considered bold by the largely conservative Pakistani community.[12] Some international news media compared her to Kim Kardashian,[13] however local commentators stated that she was more significant than Kardashian as Baloch "went against the norms of society" and lived life on her own terms.[14]

In June 2016 Baloch met senior cleric Mufti Abdul Qawi in a hotel room to learn more about her faith; the interaction between them brought mayhem on social media platforms as their photos went viral online.[15][16][17] She also wore a hat with the Mufti's signature.[18] The meeting led to the Mufti being suspended from his position on one of Pakistan's religious committees.[19]

A previous stunt which spread in social media was her promise to strip dance for her nation and to dedicate her dance to cricketer Shahid Afridi if Pakistan won the Twenty20 match against India on 19 March 2016. She released a teaser on social media, which went viral, but Pakistan lost the match.[20] Some Indian media compared her with Poonam Pandey due to her controversial personality and similarities.[21][22]

As her media presence grew, Baloch began to use her position to comment on women's position in Pakistani society. The week before she died, she released a music video entitled Ban, which mocked the restrictions placed on women in the country.[19]

In an interview with controversial anchor Mubashir Luqman, Baloch named Sunny Leone, Rakhi Sawant and Poonam Pandey as her inspirations.[23] She also said that many organizations, people and media groups were calling her to feature in their shows to increase their own ratings. [24]

Security concerns
Following the June 2016 meeting with Qawi, Baloch reported that she received death threats both from him and from others.[25][19] At around the same time, Baloch's ex-husband described in the media their brief marriage, revealing intimate details of their relationship. Baloch claimed her husband had been abusive, and cried publicly about the pain of the marriage.[26] Around 14 July 2016, Baloch spoke by phone to a reporter from the Express Tribune paper and stated that she feared for her life.[19] She told the reporter that she had sought protection from the police but on receiving no response, had decided to move abroad with her parents after the Eid al-Fitr holiday as she felt unsafe in Pakistan.[11]

Personal life
Baloch married Ashiq Hussain in 2008, aged 17, and had one son with him.[27][28] Baloch left her husband a year later, claiming he was abusive.[11][29] There are reports Baloch was separated from a second marriage.[30]

Death
On 15 July 2016, Baloch was asphyxiated by her brother Waseem while she was asleep in her parents' house in Multan.[11][30] Her death was reported by her father Azeem.[11][31][32] It was first reported as a shooting, but an autopsy report confirmed that Baloch was murdered by asphyxiation while she was asleep,[33] on the night of 15–16 July around 11:15p.m. to 11:30p.m.; by the time her body was found she had already been dead for fifteen to thirty six hours.[34] Marks on Baloch's body revealed that her mouth and nose were pinned shut to asphyxiate her.[35][26] Police called the murder an honor killing.[36]

A First Information Report against her brother Waseem and her other brother Aslam Shaheen, who allegedly persuaded Waseem to kill their sister, was issued.[37][38] Baloch's father Azeem stated in the FIR that his sons Aslam Shaheen and Waseem were responsible for their sister’s death and had killed her for her money. Her father told the press "my daughter was brave and I will not forget or forgive her brutal murder."[39]

Waseem was arres