Iraq (MNN) — Iran and Iraq have recently witnessed two “honor killings” of women.
Joe Willey with SAT-7 USA talks about a case from Northern Iraq. “Now these so-called honor killings can be defined as the killing of a relative, especially a girl or a woman, who is perceived to have brought dishonor to the family. One of these two women was killed after she posted a video of herself on TikTok singing Christian songs.”
“It’s suspected that her murder was in retaliation for her apparent Christian beliefs.”
This woman was the daughter of a Muslim cleric and had been married off at age 12. She had separated from her husband and had become an activist for women’s rights. Her brother and uncle killed her.
In Iran, a husband beheaded his 17-year-old wife after she returned from fleeing to Turkey. People took pictures of him parading her remains through the streets. She had also been married at 12 years old, younger than Iran’s legal limit of 13 for girls (15 for boys).
Sadly, the Iranian government’s response was to shut down the news agency that first broke the story.
Value of women
It’s an illustration of how little these societies value women. Willey says, “Iran’s civil law says that if a woman withholds her duties toward her husband, she does not receive financial support. Women face tension and challenges if they leave their home without the right kind of clothing. And I found this to be startling from my American perspective, but even riding a bicycle may subject a woman to criminal proceedings.”
SAT-7 programs work to change this culture through programs like Insiders, which airs on the Farsi language channel SAT-7 PARS. Willey says, “Viewers in Iran are presented with the biblical truth that women are made in the image of God and have intrinsic value. That’s the same value as a man. SAT-7 programming is also breaking a cultural taboo by even discussing these topics.”
Ask God to change the cultural view of women in Iraq and Iran.
Header photo courtesy of SAT-7 USA.
