More than 200 mark anniversary of Dresden "scarf" murder

Jul 1, 2010, 16:50 GMT

Dresden, Germany - More than 200 people Thursday mourned the death of a young Muslim mother whose stabbing a year ago in Dresden, Germany sent shockwaves throughout the Islamic world.

Many laid white flowers in the corridor outside the courtroom where a self-described racist immigrant from Russia killed Marwa el-Shirbini, 31, a pregnant Egyptian pharmacist. The assailant, Aleksander Wiens, is now serving life in prison for murder.

A bronze plaque in memory of el-Shirbini was unveiled at the moving ceremony. The July 1, 2009 killing became known as the 'scarf' murder because the young mother had initially suffered verbal abuse from Wiens on a city playground over her Islamic headscarf.

It also raised questions about lax security: she was murdered in a courtroom as she gave evidence about his racist slurs.

'This attack shocked us all and cast a grave shadow on the justice system and on Germany,' said Juergen Martens, justice minister of the state of Lower Saxony, the principal speaker.

The murder had appalled the people of Dresden, of Germany and of the whole world, he said. 'A little boy lost his mother, a husband lost his pregnant wife and all of us lost a vivacious, courageous fellow resident.'

Her Egyptian academic husband, Elwy Ali Okaz, 32, and their son Mustafa, born in Dresden in 2006, were not present for the ceremony. Academic associates said he was now living in Britain and had declined to return. Okaz was badly wounded as he vainly tried to protect his wife.

Dresden Muslims at the memorial event said they were well on the way to building a community centre in Dresden to be named after el-Shirbini. The centre would be for education and cultural exchange.

They said it would be a symbol of the fight against racism and for greater tolerance.