Lebanese husband and pregnant Syrian wife found murdered in Istanbul

A Lebanese citizen and his Syrian wife were found murdered and dumped in the Arnavutkoy neighborhood in Istanbul, the Lebanese foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that two Syrian suspects have been arrested.

The man was identified as Mohammed Mahmoud Bashir and the wife as Nisrine Kreidy. Both were born in 1978.

Kreidy was in her first trimester of pregnancy.

The Lebanese consulate in Turkey communicated with Bashir’s brother Bassel to identify the bodies, the statement said.

The ministry also denied initial media reports that the couple’s 10-year-old child was missing. It did not elaborate any further on the fate of their daughter but Turkish media reports said the child, who is called Naya, was handed over to a child care authority.

The ministry added that it will follow up with the police and forensics to learn more about the murder before transferring the bodies to Lebanon.

According to Turkish media reports, the bodies were found on Thursday. Preliminary investigation led the police to believe that the perpetrators stole the couple’s money and then killed them.