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Blood money marriage makes comeback in Iraq

Despite protests, and being banned since the 1950s, fasliya marriage has re-emerged among Iraqi tribes.
Iraqi newlywed Naheb Saidi, 25, sits holding a Koran Holy book and a bouquet of flowers during her wedding party in Baghdad July 1, 2004. [As the world watched Saddam Hussein's first court appearance, the couple took their vows to lead a new life together.] - RTXMPMI

BAGHDAD — Women took to the streets of al-Mutanabbi Street in central Baghdad June 2, holding large banners denouncing fasliya marriage — the Arabic word for marriages arranged as compensation, through which tribal conflicts are resolved — which has surfaced in Iraq anew. The return of this type of marriage comes as a result of a frail state and the predominance of tribal values over social life, as well as the exacerbation of conflicts between Iraqi tribes in central and southern areas.

Women who have been placed in a fasliya marriage are not entitled to file for divorce or separation because, according to tribal customs, they are stripped away of any rights.

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