Why people around the world are paying attention to the murders in Chapel Hill

The shocking murders of three young Muslims in Chapel Hill, North Carolina this week has triggered an outpouring of grief and anger around the world.

Deah Barakat, 23; his wife, Yusor Abu-Salha, 21; and her sister, Razan Abu-Salha, 19, were shot dead in an apartment complex by their neighbor.

Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

“Police on Wednesday said that initial indications suggested the shooting stemmed from 'an ongoing neighbor dispute over parking,' an assertion that was echoed by the suspected shooter’s wife,” The Washington Post reported. 

Family members of the victims have said that the murders should be treated as a hate crime.

“It was execution style, a bullet in every head,” Mohammad Abu-Salha, the father of Razan and Yusor, told the News and Observer. “This was not a dispute over a parking space; this was a hate crime.”

Abu Salha also told the paper his daughter described Hicks as “hateful” a week ago.

The FBI has opened an inquiry into the case.

In the days following the tragedy, those closest to Barakat, Abu-Salha and her younger sister have painted a picture of what they were like during their short lives.

Barakat’s older sister Suzanne, during an interview with Anderson Cooper, described her brother as “a 6-foot-3-inch young man who had the kindest heart, who loved everyone he met, greeted strangers with hugs and dedicated his life to service."

The dental student was described as someone who “gave without thinking twice about it,” long-time friend Omar Abdel-Baky told CNN. "I want people to know that about him — he was such a kind person."

Barakat’s wife, who was set to join him at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's dental school in the fall, was similarly celebrated by people who praised her generosity and humility.

Amira Ata told Fusion that Abu-Salha was “like a sister” to her.

“She always put others ahead of herself, just like her husband, Deah Barakat. I am the person I am today because of her,” she said.

Abu-Salha's younger sister, an architecture student at North Carolina State University, was described by one friend as “loving” and “kind.”

“She had a smile that could light a whole room, and her compassion and strength showed us the importance of giving back,” Yasmine Inaya told the Daily Tar Heel.

Doha Hindi met the younger Abu-Salha in first grade, and told Coming of Faith that Abu-Salha was “gentle and sweet,” and devoted her little spare time to giving back.

People around the world have taken to social media to mourn the three students.

For many, the story is about more than the loss of three bright people. Some feel that it symbolizes unaddressed and mounting Islamophobia, and a frustration with the media narrative around Muslims.

GlobalPost reached out to some readers and social media users outside of the US to hear why the tragedy in Chapel Hill matters to them. Here's what they said:

Natasha Hall, an American living in Turkey, said feelings of anger and sadness were a “reasonable response” to such an awful crime.

I'm overseas but American and this story simply saddened me as a human being. People expressing outrage and sadness over a hate crime and a murder that will in fact "terrorize" a minority community should be a reasonable response. The assassination of activists and good-hearted people should anger America. I think what struck me more is that my Syrian friend who is under siege posted about the story with alarm, sadness and outrage. That should tell America something. No?

From Canada, Shireen Ahmed expressed fear that nowhere on the planet was safe for Muslims.

This is so upsetting, confusing, enraging and saddening. Parking infraction or simply just observing a faith — they were shot execution style. Seems as if there will never be a truly safe space for us away from our home countries (some of which are also dangerous for various reasons) despite being born and raised in Canada. And the coverage was ridiculous. Some lives just don't matter as much.

Safiyyah Surtee, from South Africa, said she felt a connection to the victims.

I'm a South African Muslim activist. This story deeply affected me because of shared religious identity with the victims, because I work on media critique with regards to Muslim and Islamic coverage, because they were so young and innocent, and because it is overall tragic and senseless.

From Australia, Samah Hadid is worried that such terrible crimes can take place “so casually.”

As a Muslim living in a Western country, the tragedy has shaken me. It could have been me or my family or my friends in that same position. It's honestly frightening knowing that we live in a world where hate crimes can take place so casually and our personal security is now at greater risk.

Aamer Rahman, also from Australia, placed the blame on those who "present Muslims as a threat."

"We all knew something like this would happen sooner or later somewhere. We've seen racism and violence towards our communities escalate consistently for well over a decade. Sadly this is just the obvious and predictable outcome when the likes of Fox News, Bill Maher and Sam Harris deliberately and consistently present Muslims as a threat to the public."

Dina Atef wrote from Egypt that “part of my family died” when the three students were killed.

As a Muslim, I just feel part of my family died. When a Muslim dies in Syria, Iraq, anywhere, a part of me dies. Those three were not involved in politics or wars, they were serving the community. I feel that when an atheist kills me, no one will care because I am not a French journalist or an atheist. It makes me feel oppressed, sad, worthless.