THE first memorial day to remember victims of honour killings will be on July 14 - the birthday of 17-year-old Bradford-born Shafilea Ahmed, who was murdered by her parents.

The day, which will be marked every year, was secured by Karma Nirvana, a UK charity which supports victims of honour crimes and forced marriages and Cosmopolitan magazine.

Shafilea (pictured) was suffocated by her parents in 2003 after suffering years of honour-based violence, including an attempted forced marriage - she was just one of an estimated 5,000 women across the world killed each year for bringing ‘shame’ upon their families.

The memorial day was brought about after a Change.org petition in May 2014 urged people to pledge their support and more than 115,000 signatures were gathered with the support of the three main political parties.

Jasvinder Sanghera, a survivor of forced marriage and founder and chief executive of Karma Nirvana, hopes the memorial day will encourage victims of honour-based violence to speak out.

“Girls and women can be murdered for the most basic freedoms – the right to education, independence or wanting to choose their partner," she said.

"A day of memory will honour these women and dishonour the crime. It will also raise awareness so anyone can spot this abuse and potentially save someone’s life.”