Zayn Malik's teenage sister has received death threats on social media.

Safaa Malik, the 17-year-old sister of the former One Direction star, has been targeted by a series of vile messages on Instagram, with a troll threatening the life of her baby daughter Zaneyah, who was born in January.

A friend of Safaa shared a snap of Zaneyah on the photo-sharing platform, and the abusive messages that have been directed towards her.

Sharing the messages on her own Instagram account, Safaa said: ''What a disgusting world!! (sic)''

The troll wrote: ''Your baby's ugly. (sic)''

Another of the abusive comments read: ''Got married to cover that fact that you was pregnant. (sic)''

The troll was subsequently alerted to the fact that the messages were being directed to the wrong person.

However, the troll added: ''When her kid dies you'll listen lol. Hope her kid dies it's ugly anyway. (sic)''

Safaa married Martin Tiser, 18, in September, and she recently hailed her husband for giving her a ''new'' future to look forward to.

She wrote: ''Being a young mum means that we met a little early but it also means I get to love you a little longer.

''Some people said that my life ended when I had a baby but my life had just began.

''You didn't take away from my future, you gave me a new one. Repost if you are a proud mother. (sic)''

Meanwhile, Zayn is also set to become a dad for the first time later this year.

Gigi Hadid - Zayn's girlfriend - recently revealed she is looking forward to the challenge of motherhood.

She said: ''We're very excited and happy and grateful for everyone's well wishes and support. Especially during this time, it's a nice silver lining to be able to be home and be together and really experience it day by day.''