TikTok star, 17, shot dead after rejecting man

A 17-year old social media influencer has been shot dead in her home in Pakistan

Umar Hayat has been arrested and has since confessed to murdering the young woman, according to the police.

Authorities believe Umar Hayat murdered Sana Yousaf in her home after she rejected his 'offers of friendship'.

He allegedly tried to repeatedly meet her but failed every time.

According to the police, Hayat broke into her home, fired two shots, killing the young woman, stole her phone and fled.

Ms Yousaf died before she could be taken to the hospital due to her injuries.

Sana's father Syed Yousaf Hassan, told the BBC that Sana was his only daughter and that she was ''very brave".

Mr Hassan went on to explain that Sana's aunt was also present at the family home when Umar Hayat started firing shots. The suspect had also threatened to kill Sana's aunt before fleeing.

Mr Yousaf said that his daughter had never mentioned the 22-year-old, let alone any threatening behaviour he could have made towards her.

The chilling murder has caused a wave of concern across Pakistan.

The police said that there was "immense" pressure to find the killer, per the BBC.

The suspected murder weapon and Ms Yousaf's phone have been recovered after they raided locations across the capital and the province of Punjab.

Sana Yousaf had a big following in Pakistan, across Instagram and TikTok.

Following her death, condolences have flooded her social media pages and her TikTok account has gained hundreds of thousands of followers.

Her TikTok account now stands at 1.5 million followers.

Due to Sana's large following, the news of her death gained a lot of attention in local news media and on social media. Additionally, it's led to a fierce debate about women with a social media presence.

Although many people are outraged about her murder, some people are critiquing her work as an influencer.

Usama Khilji, director of the digital rights advocacy group Bolo Bhi, has said that criticism has been coming from a small portion of male internet users.

Some of the critiques have been substantiated on religious grounds.

"They're asking why she was putting up all this content, and even suggesting the family should take down her Instagram and TikTok accounts because they add to her 'sins'," Mr Khilji explained, per the BBC

A well-known human rights activist, Dr Farzana Bari, shared her opinion on the criticism, calling the comments "misogynistic" and "patriarchal", according to the BBC.

She goes on to say Ms Yousaf had "her own voice", and claims that social media has become a "very threatening place for female content creators" in Pakistan.