Two Saudi sisters found dead in their beds in Sydney attended a girls-only queer event in January where they told acquaintances gay women “live in fear” in Saudi Arabia. The Guardian understands New South Wales police are investigating whether one or both of the sisters may have feared being persecuted for their sexuality in their homeland, which they fled together in 2017 for Australia, where they made claims for asylum. The bodies of Asra Abdullah Alsehli, 24, and Amaal Abdullah Alsehli, 23, were found in their beds in their apartment in Canterbury on 7 June. The women had been dead for more than a month when they were found, police say.