UK: British-Lebanese teen shot dead in drive-by shooting

A 19-year-old Lebanese-British woman was shot dead in a drive-by shooting in Blackburn, Lancashire, yesterday.

Named locally as Aya Hachem, the young Muslim was reportedly shopping at Lidl, just 100 metres from her family home, when she was gunned down.

Lancashire police were called shortly after 3pm to attend reports a woman had been found unresponsive after gunshots were heard in the area. Hachem was taken to hospital but was later pronounced dead.

Police said: “Formal identification has yet to take place, but we believe her to be a 19-year-old woman from Blackburn. Her family have been informed and are being supported by specifically trained officers.”

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“A Home Office post-mortem will take place in due course to establish the cause of death, though it is thought at this time that she died from a gunshot wound.”

The statement added a light-coloured, possibly metallic green Toyota Avensis had been seen leaving the scene and was later recovered nearby. Police are appealing for anyone who may have seen the car or have dashcam footage of the incident to contact them.

Detective Chief Inspector Jonathon Holmes added: “This is a truly shocking and senseless killing, which has robbed a young woman of her life.”

Hachem was a second-year law student at the University of Salford and had been trustee with the Children’s Society since April 2014, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Social media users have flocked to Twitter with the hashtag #RIPAYA, with many quick to point out the lack of media coverage, and that some outlets had failed to mention Hachem wore a hijab.

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Others termed the incident “a brutal terrorist attack in broad daylight”. One user wrote: “Blackburn is full of Muslim women who, as a result of this tragedy, are going to be scared to leave their homes.”

A JustGiving page has been launched to raise money for a mosque to be built in Hachem’s memory. At the time of writing, the fund had received £25,698 from a total of 1,411 donors.

One artist posted a cartoon recreation of a picture of Hachem alongside a tribute.

The user wrote: “A beautiful innocent soul has been taken, [she] won’t be returning home to her family, it’s honestly so sad and got my heart aching.”

https://twitter.com/hvmayewn/status/1262304249209290752