Trending – Sara Sharif murdered. Who’s to blame?
Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother were found guilty of murdering the 10-year-old British. Urfan Sharif, 43, and Beinash Batool, 30, had subjected Sara to “horrific suffering” before her body was found at the family’s home in Surrey last year.
Since the guilty verdict, reactions to the abuse Sara suffered as well as the missed opportunities to save her life have been brought to the forefront of the conversation as everyone looks for who to blame.
Basic facts
- Sara Sharif, 10, was found dead at her family’s home in Surrey on 10 August 2023
- Her death appears to have been caused by injuries relating to abuse
- Three suspects – her father, stepmother and uncle fled to Pakistan
- They were arrested on their return, her dad later admitted to killing her
- On 11 December 2024, her father and his partner were found guilty of her murder
The reaction
The story has been met with sadness and horror as details emerge about the violence the youngster endured during her 10 years. The media – in print and online – are united in their calls for an inquiry into child protection services in the UK and express anger at the many missed opportunities there were to save her life.
Several publications note Sara and her family were known to social services and questions are lingering over why the father was given joint custody despite knowing he had ‘beat’ Sara’s siblings. Sara had been on the child protection list since birth over allegations of neglect and violence but still somehow slipped through the gaps – leaving her in the hands of her violent and cruel father and stepmother.
The Daily Express says Sara was “killed by the very adults who should have loved and protected her.” The paper calls for an inquiry to look at what is going wrong with child protection in the UK. The Daily Mirror says Sara was described as a “cheerful little soul” whose smile masked the horrors she endured. She died after “two years of sickening abuse,’” the paper adds. The Metro says Sharif showed “no emotion” after a jury found him guilty of his daughter’s murder. The paper says Sharif’s brother, Faisal Malik, 29, was convicted of causing or allowing a child’s death and that the three will be sentenced next week.
The Times says Sara was “plunged into a life of misery and violence” from the moment she was born, despite being the subject of a child protection plan from birth. From when Sara was a toddler, in around 2013, council workers observed issues with her development, including that she was unable to “vocalise to protect herself” and, on one occasion, stood facing a wall.
The Mail says at least 15 chances to prevent Sara’s death were missed by the courts, police, social services and teachers. She was “let down by everyone supposed to protect her”, it says. The paper adds Sharif and Batool now face a “lifetime behind bars”. The i newspaper quotes Children’s Commissioner Rachel de Souza saying that Sara was “failed in the starkest terms by the safety net of services around her” and that the case highlights “profound weaknesses in our system”.
Front pages react
Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother found guilty of murder.
— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) December 11, 2024
A warning – this report contains distressing themes. pic.twitter.com/jHoya23vHi
She was known to the authorities BEFORE she was born. Nearly taken into care. When the school made a disclosure, social services told the SCHOOL to monitor her. The father took her of school. He killed her.
— Samantha Billingham (@SODASam_) December 11, 2024
Sara Sharif completely failed by the system. An utter disgrace!
Sara Sharif was murdered by her father and stepmother.
— Dr Charlotte Proudman (@DrProudman) December 11, 2024
Why did a family court judge place a vulnerable child in their custody? We need answers.https://t.co/YwqHUP4tvN