Murder of a Young Woman and Her 8-Month-Old Fetus in Kermanshah by Relatives of Her Husband

A few days after a teenage girl was killed by her father in Piranshahr, a young pregnant woman was shot dead by her husband's relatives at a party in Kermanshah. According to a report on Thursday, February 11, by the news agency Rokna, in this shooting, the 8-month-old fetus was killed along with its 27-year-old mother. Rokna reported that the young woman's name was 'Golnaz' and noted that she 'was in a coma for 21 days and ultimately lost her life.' This media outlet did not publish many details about the incident, but according to 'local sources,' it reported that 'the sister-in-law of the victim has been arrested by the police, but the main suspect is at large.' Femicide in Iran has been repeatedly reported, backed by the laws of the Islamic Republic. Recently, a Kurdish teenage girl was killed by her father in Piranshahr. Kani Abdollahi, a 17-year-old resident of the village of Mashkan in Piranshahr, was killed on February 6 by her father, who suspected her of having a romantic relationship with a boy 'with knife wounds.' Some sources also reported that the reason for the murder was 'the father's opposition to his daughter secretly owning a mobile phone.' Citizen reports indicate that in the past, Kani's cousin was also killed by her father 'in a similar manner.' Some social media users reacted to the killing of this teenage girl by her father, stating that 'the combination of patriarchal culture and the lack of protective laws has made the cycle of femicide endless.' Meanwhile, the Hengaw human rights organization reported that 17-year-old Atefeh Zaghibi, a victim of child marriage in Shushtar County in Khuzestan province, was killed by her father and brother with a firearm. According to this report, the motive for the murderers was Atefeh's escape with a young man and her marriage to him. Hengaw wrote that Atefeh Zaghibi, from the Shoybiyeh district of Shushtar, was shot dead with 16 bullets in front of her infant on the morning of Wednesday, February 10. This human rights organization noted: Atefeh's father and brother entered her home disguised as military personnel and, after her husband fled for fear of being arrested by the authorities, they killed Atefeh with multiple gunshots. According to the Rokna website, Atefeh Zaghibi had escaped with a man two years ago and a year ago, after paying 600 million tomans to the family for the 'season' custom of resolving disputes and recognizing this marriage, her father had threatened that he would kill his daughter after receiving the money. The Islamic Penal Code in Iran has left loopholes in cases of spousal murder or femicide, allowing the killer to enjoy immunity under pretexts such as 'honor' or suspicion of 'illicit relations.' In September of this year, a 17-year-old girl named Mobina Zeynivand was killed by her father in Darehshahr County, Ilam province, due to her father's suspicion of her having 'a relationship with a teenage boy.' According to the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in the case of a murder committed by a father, based on 'blood right' and due to what is referred to in Islamic Republic laws as 'the guardian of the blood,' the killer is practically immune. According to a previous report by the newspaper 'Etemad,' at least 78 women and girls were killed by male family members in the first half of the year 1403. Additionally, a Tehran-based newspaper reported the murder of 78 women and girls in the first six months of the year. In Esfand 1402, the organization 'Stop Femicide Iran,' based in New York, reported that in 2023, 156 cases of 'femicide' were recorded in Iran, averaging 13 murders per month.