Overview

• Police say 22-year-old Umar Hayat broke into Yousaf’s Islamabad home, shot her dead in front of her mother and confessed after his arrest on Tuesday.
• The attack occurred just hours after Yousaf celebrated her 17th birthday, with her final TikTok post showing her enjoying the celebration with friends and family.
• Yousaf had amassed nearly one million followers on TikTok and maintained a large Instagram presence, sharing cultural insights and lifestyle content.
• Fans around the world have flooded her recent birthday video with condolences and expressions of shock at the violent loss of the young influencer.
• Observers link the killing to a broader pattern of gender-based violence in Pakistan and draw parallels to the 2016 murder of influencer Qandeel Baloch.