Cousin charged with killing Syrian mother and daughter activist pair in Turkey

A Turkish court has sentenced a man to life in prison for fatally stabbing a prominent Syrian activist and her US-born daughter, Turkey's state-run news agency reported on Tuesday.

The bodies of 60-year-old Orouba Barakat and 23-year-old Hala Barakat were discovered in their home in Istanbul in September. Police later arrested a cousin, Ahmet Barakat, who prosecutors later charged with murder.

The Istanbul court on Tuesday convicted Barakat of murder and sentenced him to two life terms without parole, Anadolu Agency said.

Anadolu added that Barakat initially confessed to killing his cousins after a fight over money, but later denied involvement.

He claimed during Tuesday's hearing that he had been misled by an interpreter who told him he would get a light sentence if he confessed, according to Anadolu.

In November it was announced that the FBI was investigating the double murder, as Hala was born in North Carolina and the FBI therefore had jurisdiction to investigate her death. Turkish authorities however declined any offer of assistance.

Prosecutors, along with the Barakats' relatives, were sceptical of Ahmet's alleged motive of financial woes, believing he was an operative of the Assad regime who had been ordered to assassinate the women, despite Ahmet being a Free Syrian Army fighter.