Family of Solihull murder victims welcome introduction of 'Raneem's Law'

The family of two women from Solihull, who were murdered by a violent ex-partner, have welcomed the government introducing new measures to combat violence against women and girls.

The first wave of police forces will start embedding domestic abuse specialists in their 999 control rooms early next year to stop emergency services missing opportunities to save women's lives.

Raneem Oudeh, 22, and her mother Khaola Saleem were stabbed to death in August 2018 by Ms Oudeh's estranged husband.

She had made more than a dozen 999 calls in the weeks before she was killed, reporting domestic abuse, threats to kill and stalking by Janbaz Tarin.

He was jailed for life with a minimum of 32 years.

The new measures will form part of ‘Raneem’s Law’ in memory of Raneem Oudeh and her mother.

Nour Norris, Ms Oudeh's aunt, has been campaigning for 'Raneem's Law' since the women were killed.

Ms Norris said: "Raneem's Law will ensure that domestic abuse specialists are present in 999 control rooms so victims' calls for help are taken seriously and save lives by making sure no warning signs are ignored, unlike in Raneem's story.

"I am deeply proud that this Government has listened and acted quickly to make Raneem's Law a reality.

"Their commitment to addressing domestic violence has shown me that change is possible when we refuse to stay silent."

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "Victims of appalling domestic abuse need to know that the police will be there for them.

"Today's measures are the start of this new Government's mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade."

A domestic abuse protection order pilot is to be launched in November that will place tougher sanctions on domestic abusers if they fail to stay away from their victims.

Perpetrators will be legally required to inform the police of any name or address changes under the new orders.

The orders will also allow electronic tagging to be imposed and assessments for behaviour change programmes to be ordered.

An inquest into the murders of Raneem Oudeh and Khaola Saleem found multiple failures by West Midlands Police "materially contributed" to their deaths.

It heard evidence of police call-outs to Ms Oudeh's address on seven separate occasions in the weeks leading up to the murders.

Five officers were disciplined over the failures.

West Midlands Police said it had made a number of changes since the murders of Raneem Oudeh and Khaola Saleem, including increasing the number of staff specifically investigating domestic abuse offences and the creation of a new team to review investigations.

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