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26th Oct 2021

Sabina Nessa’s sister calls for leaders to “step up” and make streets safe for women

Katy Brennan

“There aren’t enough words to explain how much it’s hurting inside.”

The sister of Sabina Nessa has said leaders must “step up” in order to make the streets of London safer for women.

Jebina Yasmin Islam said it is crucial something is done to prevent what happened to her sister from happening again.

Sabina, a 28-year-old school teacher, was attacked and later murdered in Cator Park, South East London, as she walked to meet a friend on 17 September.

Her sister told ITV news that women should not have to live in fear of walking alone in the streets.

“Boris (Johnson) needs to do something, Sadiq Khan needs to implement something for us to feel safe to walk the streets alone,” she said.

“We shouldn’t be going home extra early just because we don’t feel safe.

“We are independent, we live in a country where we can walk alone, but we can’t because of what’s happening, what happened to my sister, what has happened in the past.

“We need to make sure that this does not happen again and Boris, Sadiq Khan, they need to step up.”

Sabina’s body was found 24 hours after her attack near a community centre in Cator Park. 36-year-old Koci Selamaj, a garage worker from Eastbourne, was charged with her murder and is due to appear in court on 16 December for a plea hearing.

“You don’t feel like this would happen to you,” Jebina Yasmin said. “There aren’t enough words to explain how much it’s hurting inside.

“The world is carrying on. Who would have thought it was five weeks on that she’s passed away?”

Sabina’s family, including her three sisters, organised a celebration over the weekend to mark what would have been her 29th birthday.

“It feels like we got the news yesterday.

“We’re four sisters, we’re not three. We’ll always be four sisters even though she’s not here.”