Afsaneh Mohammadi, 58, was murdered by her ex-husband in front of their 40-year-old daughter on Wednesday, police confirmed on Thursday. The killing marks the second femicide on the island within eight weeks.
Police were called to the scene at around 2.30am on Wednesday, after receiving information about an injured woman at a residence in Nicosia. The 58-year-old later succumbed to severe head injuries in the ambulance on the way to Nicosia general hospital.
Her ex-husband, a 62-year-old man, was arrested shortly after the incident and remanded in custody for eight days in connection with the case. Investigations into the murder are ongoing.
Gender equality commissioner Josie Christodoulou on Thursday expressed her sadness and dismay over the new femicide.
“Gender-based violence is not a private matter. It is a phenomenon that concerns us all, on an individual and collective level,” she said.
Christodoulou stressed that gender-based violence remains a harsh reality, one that can only be prevented through timely intervention and systematic efforts to dismantle the stereotypes and power relations that fuel it.
Women’s organisation Pogo also condemned the murder, warning against describing the incident as a “family tragedy.” The group said it was the product of a patriarchal system and highlighted the particular vulnerability of marginalised women.
“The poor, the immigrants, those who lack social and institutional protection. For these women, gender-based violence is a daily trap with no way out,” Pogo said.
The group pointed to the shortage of women’s shelters and a lack of protection mechanisms to safeguard women affected by violence, leading to them being left alone and exposed to danger.
Pogo said the state was unable to respond to the prevention and handling of gender-based violence effectively, blaming the government for not implementing enough measures for the protection of women.
“Yesterday’s femicide is the result of a patriarchal system that continues to want women to be submissive, vulnerable, the property of men. A system that grows stronger through the inaction and indifference of the state and society,” Pogo said.
The murder of Afsaneh Mohammadi marks the second femicide in Cyprus within less than eight weeks, displaying stark similarities to the murder of 34-year-old Eirin Papakitsa in Paphos on August 17.
Papakitsa was stabbed to death by her partner in their home, in front of her 14-year-old son, who was also injured and begged neighbours for help while his mother was being attacked. Police confirmed to the Cyprus Mail that the case has since gone to trial.
In a third case earlier this year, which police investigated as an attempted femicide, a , a 57-year-old man in Peyia was arrested after seriously wounding his wife with two gunshots in January. The woman was later found on the pavement opposite her home with gunshot wounds to her head and body but survived.
According to the European Institute for Gender Equality, between the years 2014 and 2023, 43 women were murdered in Cyprus, 19 of which were committed between 2019 and 2023.
