DUHOK, Iraqi Kurdistan region,— A 35-year-old Kurdish mother of three succumbed to severe burn injuries on Sunday, days after allegedly being set on fire by her brother.
Kufan Nuri Taher was brutally assaulted by her 45-year-old brother in what appears to be an honor killing. She was set ablaze in central Duhok, Iraqi Kurdistan, according to a report from the city’s police directorate on Tuesday.
The suspect fled but was apprehended four hours later in the Chamanke district.
Kurdish authorities reported that approximately 80 percent of Taher’s body was burned, and she was placed in intensive care. She passed away on Sunday morning.
The police stated that the reason for the killing was described as a “social problem,” a term they use to refer to domestic violence.
Iraqi Kurdistan continues to grapple with high rates of gender-based violence, including sexual assault, domestic abuse, so-called honor violence, child marriages, and female genital mutilation (FGM).
In 2023 alone, at least 30 women were killed in the region, as reported by the Combatting Violence against Women Directorate. The previous year, 2022, witnessed the highest femicide rate in recent years, with at least 44 women murdered.
In April 2024, a 19-year-old Kurdish blogger and TikTok influencer, Fairuz Azad, was killed by her own family in what appears to be an honor killing.
In May 2024, a father fatally stabbed his 18-year-old daughter in Penjwen, Sulaimani province, over a “social dispute,” a term commonly used to describe domestic violence in the region.
In a similar case in February 2022, a 21-year-old mother of two was burned alive by her husband, succumbing to her injuries after five days in the hospital. Her husband was sentenced to death for her murder in February 2024.
Despite commitments from the so-called Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to combat gender-based violence, it remains a pervasive issue in Iraqi Kurdistan, manifesting in severe forms such as sexual violence, domestic abuse, honor killings, child marriages, and FGM.
Many cases go unreported due to the stigma and fear of bringing shame to the family.
(With files from Rudaw)
- Read more about: Violence against Kurdish women
Copyright © 2024 iKurd.net. All rights reserved
Related posts:
The Resurrection (Ba’ath) Party – Before the Iran-Iraq War
Anonymous women’s graves highlight honor killings in Sulaimani, Iraqi Kurdistan
The Hit List: Killing pro-Kurds on the orders of the Turkish State – then and now
The Mustashar and the Jash – A View from the Position of ‘Iraqi National Unity’ on the ‘Descendants of Treason’
Iraqi Kurdistan fails to support domestic violence victims: Amnesty
Honor killings are not part of Kurdish heritage, but imported culture: sociologist
Anfal – The Black Stain on Iraqi History Spreads
Iraqi Kurdistan: The Emperors’ New Clothes
Iraqi Kurdistan – “Sold Out!” – Part II
Iraq’s Internal Enemies: Shi’a rivalries and the fallout from the US-led invasion
