Honor killings in Iraq rekindle efforts to criminalize domestic violence 

There is once again outrage and calls for legal reforms in Iraq to protect women from being murdered at the hands of family members.
Iraqi women's rights activists lift placards during a rally near the Supreme Judicial Council in Baghdad on Feb. 5.
Iraqi women's rights activists lift placards during a rally near the Supreme Judicial Council in Baghdad on Feb. 5, 2023, to protest the killing of Iraqi Youtuber Tiba al-Ali by her father in Diwaniyah. Ali's death has sparked outrage in Iraq where so-called "honor killings" continue to take place in the conservative country. - AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images
Shelly Kittleson.jpg
Shelly Kittleson
@shellykittleson

BAGHDAD — A number of high-profile cases of women and girls killed by family members across Iraq in recent months are attracting attention once again, leading to a resurgence of calls for Iraq to enact laws against domestic violence. 

Last month, the case of a young woman in a “family dispute” in which the community police had been asked to mediate ended badly when a 22-year-old Youtuber was killed by her father. He has reportedly admitted to strangling her in her sleep.  

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