Islamabad, Apr 24 (PTI) A 26-year-old Italian-Pakistani woman was killed allegedly by her family members to protect their "honour" in Pakistan's Punjab province, according to a media report today.

Sana Cheema was killed by her father, brother, and uncle for resisting their proposal to marry a relative, Geo news reported.

According to police, the woman's family had initially termed the death as an "accident" and buried the body in West Mangowal area of Gujrat district of the province.

Cheema's murder prompted the local police to investigate the matter.

Kunja police station official Waqar Ahmad told PTI that police has initiated the probe.

On police' application, a sessions judge today allowed to exhume Cheema's body, Ahmad said, adding her body would be exhumed tomorrow.

"After conducting autopsy the real cause of her death will be known," he said.

According to reports, the girl's father, Ghulam Mustafa, wanted to marry her off to his relatives, while she wanted to get married in Italy.

The father then took on board his son, Adnan Mustafa, and brother, Mazhar Iqbal, and hatched a plan to kill her, according to the report.

In 2016, the death of 28-year-old British national Samia Shahid and the shocking murder of social media star Qandeel Baloch by her brother had turned the spotlight on the so-called honour killings in Pakistan, sparking a fresh push to close loopholes allowing the killers to walk free.

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, as many as 50 honour killing cases have been recorded in the country till April 1 this year, while 460 such killings came to light in 2017.

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