A mother and two daughters were allegedly killed by ten male relatives who believed they were having affairs.

The men are believed to have strangled their relatives in southern Egypt.

A body was found floating in the river Nile, near the town of Esna, close to the ancient city of Luxor.

It has been reported that the men used sharp tools to beat the three women in attacks that were meant to protect their family’s honour.

According to one of the suspects, who spoke to police on Thursday, the men wrapped the women’s bodies and blankets, weighted them with stones and threw them into the river Nile.

A security official said that women are murdered for violating traditional morals.

The ‘honour killings’ are not uncommon in conservative Southern Egypt, where women’s actions are thought to bring shame on the family.

Police are searching for the nine other suspects and two remaining bodies.

Honour killings are against Egyptian law, and perpetrators are prosecuted if they are arrested.

Courts are sometimes sympathetic to the accused and give lighter sentences.