Murder of Marwa El-Sherbini

Marwa El-Sherbini
Marwa El-Sherbini
Born	7 October 1977; Alexandria, Egypt
Died	1 July 2009 (aged 31); Dresden, Germany
Cause of death	Stabbing
Resting place	Alexandria, Egypt
Nationality	Egyptian
Occupation	Pharmacist
Spouse	Elwy Ali Okaz
Children	Mostafa

Marwa Ali El-Sherbini (Arabic: مروة على الشربيني),^{[note 1]} was an Egyptian woman and German resident who was killed in 2009 during an appeal hearing at a court of law in Dresden, Germany, when she was three months pregnant. She was stabbed by Alex Wiens,^{[note 2]} an ethnic German immigrant from Russia against whom she had testified in a criminal case for verbal abuse.^[1] El-Sherbini's husband, who was present at the hearing, tried to intervene. He too was repeatedly stabbed by Wiens and was then mistakenly shot and wounded by a police officer who was called to the court room.^[1] Wiens was arrested at the crime scene and subsequently tried for murder and attempted murder. He was found guilty of both charges; it was also found that Wiens's actions constituted a heinous crime, because they were committed in front of a child, against two people, in a court of law, and fulfilled the murder criterion of treacherousness, such as hatred against foreigners.^[2] Wiens was sentenced to life imprisonment.^[2]

The death of El-Sherbini immediately resulted in international reactions, with the most vocal responses coming from predominantly Muslim nations. The Egyptian public and media focused attention on the religious and racial hatred aspect of the killing,^[3] especially as the initial confrontation between the victim and perpetrator had happened because she wore an Islamic headscarf. In response to anti-German sentiments and public protests in Egypt and other countries, the German government issued a statement of condolence nine days after the incident. Wiens's trial for murder and attempted murder occurred under strict security measures and was observed by national and international media, diplomats and legal experts.

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^ ^a ^b "Woman killed in courtroom bloodbath was pregnant". The Local. 3 July 2009. Archived from the original on 7 May 2010. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
^ ^a ^b Cite error: The named reference lgdresden20091111 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference bbc20090709 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[thelocal-20090703-3] "Woman killed in courtroom bloodbath was pregnant". The Local. 3 July 2009. Archived from the original on 7 May 2010. Retrieved 7 December 2009.

[lgdresden20091111-4] Cite error: The named reference lgdresden20091111 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[bbc20090709-5] Cite error: The named reference bbc20090709 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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Marwa El-Sherbini

Born	(1977-10-07)7 October 1977 Alexandria, Egypt
Died	1 July 2009(2009-07-01) (aged 31) Dresden, Germany
Cause of death	Stabbing
Resting place	Alexandria, Egypt
Nationality	Egyptian
Occupation	Pharmacist
Spouse	Elwy Ali Okaz
Children	Mostafa