Emirati woman who tortured, murdered Ethiopian maid to walk free after paying "blood money"

Ethiopian diplomat urges court to prevent repetition of murders

 An Emirati woman who murdered her Ethiopian housemaid in Abu Dhabi is set to walk free after the maid’s relatives agreed to pardon the defendant in return for diya (blood money), a newspaper reported on Tuesday.

A criminal court in the capital said it would issue a verdict on March 25 after the relatives of the maid said they had accepted diya from the Emirati woman, who confessed to have tortured her maid without intending to kill her.

During Monday’s trail, the unnamed woman said she could not remember details of her repeated torture sessions against the maid but told court that she has a problem with domestic workers after one maid had an affair with her ex-husband.

“The Ethiopian consul who was present at the trial asked court to try and handle the defendant after she is released from jail so she will not hurt others again,” the Arabic language daily Emarat Al Youm said.

Under Islamic law, killers can be saved from the gallows in most cases if pardoned by the victim’s family in return for blood money.
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