"Honor killings and blood feuds have claimed 1,190 lives in Turkey in the past six years despite tougher penalties for such crimes, according to police figures released Friday. The figures show most of the victims and suspected perpetrators were from the country's mainly Kurdish east and southeast, where the practice of killing to clear one's honor is still widespread among the largely feudal population, according to a police statement.
Of the victims, 710 were male and 480 female, but the proportion of men who were suspects in murders was far higher at 1,413 men to just 180 women.
The most common motive - found in 29 percent of murders - was to cleanse honor, the statement said, without detailing the other categories.
The government and civic groups have in recent years stepped up efforts to stamp out honor killings, but opinion polls have shown they enjoy considerable support among the population.
A survey published in October found 37 percent of people in Diyarbakir, the main city of the predominantly Kurdish southeast, believe that a woman who has an extra-marital affair should be killed. Only 16 percent said she should not be punished."
The Daily Star - Politics - Honor killings and feuds claim nearly 1,200 lives in Turkey
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