As the sun went down and the sandstone tombs cast long shadows over the
village cemetery, Badi’aa Aswad threw herself on the mud grave of her
17-year-old daughter, Du’aa, and howled.
“Come to Mama, Du’aa,” she cried, caressing the plain concrete headstone. “The
last thing you told me was that you were hungry. Come home. Let me cook, and
feed you.”
Disturbed by the sobbing, a passer-by offered water in the hope of soothing
her. But Aswad screamed that she could not drink a drop.
“Du’aa is thirsty,” she shrieked, directing the stranger to pour the contents
of her water bottle over the dusty grave instead. “Yes, drink my baby, drink
my honourable girl, drink some water, light of my eyes.”
It is seven months since Du’aa was stoned to death by a mob in the Kurdish
hillside village of Basshiqa, northern Iraq, after being found with her
19-year-old boyfriend, Muhannad Ummayad, in an olive grove.
They were not lovers, though some in the crowd suspected they were. But Du’aa
was a member of the Yazidi sect, which teaches that the Earth is in the care
of seven angels. Yazidis are regarded as devil-worshippers by many Muslims
and Muhannad is a Sunni Muslim.
Their respective communities were outraged by their determination to marry and
while Muhannad was locked up in prison, Du’aa found herself dragged to the
marketplace for an honour killing.
Last week, Du’aa’s family spoke for the first time about the events that led
to the stoning, which has been widely condemned after mobile phone clips
were posted on the internet.
The footage was said to have prompted a revenge massacre of 23 Sunnis in
nearby Mosul. But far from curbing honour killings, Du’aa’s death has been
linked with a sharp increase in them.
According to the human rights ministry in northern Iraq, 598 women have been
burnt, beaten, shot, strangled, thrown from tall buildings, force-fed with
lethal drugs, crushed by vehicles, drowned, decapitated or made to kill
themselves so far this year, exceeding the 553 recorded for the whole of
2006.
It was around 7pm on April 5 when Du’aa told her family that she was taking
out the rubbish, then disappeared. The following morning an anonymous caller
said she was with a Muslim man.
The caller threatened to kill her in order to “wash away her shame”, so her
father Khalil, a 49-year-old civil defence official, and brother Nebraas
went to the police. Within hours, the couple were discovered among the
olives.
In an effort to cool tensions, Du’aa was taken to the home of Sheikh Sulaiman
Sulaiman, the senior Yazidi figure in the village. But her own relatives
were bitterly divided over whether she should live or die.
A 65-year-old uncle, Salim, a science teacher, backed the head of their tribe,
Omar Hamko, 73, in demanding that she be killed to “cleanse the family
honour”.
Her father would not countenance it. He proposed that she be married to a
cousin and moved to Syria.
“She has committed a wrong for which she will be punished but not through
death,” he declared. “I refuse to have my daughter killed.”
When the uncle insisted that he would decide Du’aa’s fate as the elder sibling
and head of the local Communists, her father ordered him out of the house.
Her mother, meanwhile, had gone to see her for what would prove a poignant
last meeting.
“I promise you I am still a virgin,” Du’aa said – the autopsy would confirm
this – “and I did nothing wrong, Mama.”
Du’aa’s final words to her, recalled at the graveside, were: “I’m hungry,
Mama.”
The next day, April 7, Hamko, the tribal leader, telephoned her Uncle Salim,
saying there was a plot to smuggle her out of town.
Salim sent sons, nephews and party supporters to surround the home of the
sheikh, firing shots into the air. “They came with guns and stones, shouting
and screaming in anger,” the sheikh said last week.
Looking back on the terrible scenes that followed, he lamented the manner of
Du’aa’s killing, but not her death.
“Honour is a big thing here and each one deals with it differently,” the
sheikh said. “It was down to her family to cleanse her shame. Maybe kill her
with one bullet, electrocution, any manner but not through this awful
stoning.
“There is no father who does not love his daughter. When such a father kills
his daughter to wash away their family shame, it breaks his heart to do so.
But fathers are obliged to do this, otherwise they will be ostracised.”
The sheikh is blamed by Du’aa’s mother for what happened next. “He sent her
out as a defenceless young girl,” she alleged. The mobile phone clips show
her being taken straight from the sheikh’s house to the marketplace in a
headlock, wailing and screaming as armed police watched in silence.
In the marketplace, she came under a hail of stones and her face and clothes
were soon covered in blood. Among those hurling the stones were several male
cousins from her father’s side of the family and one – Araas – from her
mother’s.
It was Araas who approached as she tried to struggle to her feet and smashed a
large piece of concrete over her head to finish her off. He told police he
had done it as “an act of mercy to put her out of her misery”.
While Araas is still being held, Uncle Salim and the tribal leader, Hamko, are
on the run. Du’aa’s father has named 20 other men as her killers. Nobody
told her parents she was dead until the following day. Her two brothers then
dug her body out of a rubbish pit for burial in the cemetery, where the
grave has been attacked.
A grenade lobbed into the garden of the family’s home last month shattered
windows and left them in no doubt that the community wants them to leave.
One of the most shocking things about Du’aa’s death, however, is that although
stoning is rare, honour killing is rampant, particularly in Kurdish areas of
Iraq and Iran. Kurdish women are killed almost every day for “dishonouring”
their families.
A law introduced in northern Iraq in 2002 allowed such killers to be convicted
of murder – in theory exposing them to the death sentence. In practice, it
has made little difference.
Dalia Dzay, head of research studies at the human rights ministry, said the
perpetrators were simply finding new ways of achieving the same grisly end,
for instance by forcing women to set fire to themselves so that their deaths
looked like accidents with cooking fuel.
Then there is a whole new class of victims to consider – those who have fled
the threat of honour killings and are alone, terrified and destitute.
In a shelter at a secret location near the town of Suleimaniya, 12 women are
in hiding together for protection. One pretty girl with wide brown eyes who
identified herself only as “H”, described how she had fallen in love with a
young man from her district when she was 18 and he was 25.
Her father ordered her to marry an older business associate and was so enraged
when she refused that he sent her to live with her grandmother. There, she
learnt that her boyfriend had been shot dead by her father and brother, who
were bragging that she would be next.
Another woman there, “J”, was forced to marry a much older man when she was 16
but bumped into a former sweetheart while shopping. Relatives who saw them
chatting assumed the worst and drove the two of them to a remote area. J’s
nose was cut off with a knife; her ex-boyfriend lost an ear.
This weekend, The Sunday Times was granted access to a prison holding men who
have carried out honour killings. None expressed remorse.
One, Rustum Mohamed Ali, 32, has been unable to provide for his wife and four
children aged 7 to 12 since he was jailed two years ago for killing his
pregnant, unmarried niece and her lover.
First he confronted the lover in the garden of his home. “I begged him, in the
name of God and morality, to marry her in order to protect her honour and
the family’s,” he said.
When the man refused, Ali shot him with a Kalashnikov. He then went indoors,
where he claims his niece said: “I deserve to be killed.” He shot her with
the same weapon. “ No man can stand for his family’s honour to be defiled,”
he said.
The mentality seems as alien as ever to Du’aa’s mother in her grief. “May they
all burn in hell,” she said last week, stroking the end of the grave as if
washing her daughter’s feet. “You were a good girl, you were honour itself
and I miss you, so please come to me in my dreams, I beg you.”
Iranian and Kurdish Women's Rights
Organisation
Additional reporting: Ali Rifat
'HONOUR' Killings?????????
How can they even make such a disgusting word such as Honour killing.... They think they honourned by doing this to a poor innocent girl with no voice of her own, just wait till you see how God will answer all your dispicable acts in HELL which is eternal Fire...
Angel, iraq, iraq
I really think it's wrong to place blame on religion for such acts. It is more culture that is to blame for these type of acts than religion. Honour killings are OK in the yezidis culture but I think education is key and a probable solution. Culture is a touchy subject because no one's culture is superior to anothers but what do you do when cultures condone death? Think about the Salem witch trials that happened in the good USA and were wrong and based on religion??
Nyamorabu, Serene,
My heart breaks for the Mother and the Daughter.
I cry as I type this.
Her father was good in heart too. A rarity - not to be a man with a brutal heart in those parts, with what they were brought up to believe is "right" and "honorable".
Those men need to change....they need to get brave and come forward...unless they enjoy killing there own, and in that case....THAT MAN honors the devil.
Allana, 7th level, az
to the men and women who are reporting on these awful and un thinkable killings, our prayers are with you all to get the story out to the rest of the world and to the children who are suffering , may you find a way out, for freedom is yours we pray.
ann, carrickmacross, ireland
Further to my previous comment regarding the untrue statement " Kurdish hillside village of Basshiqa", I confirm again that Basshiqa as the name implies is an Arabic town most of the population are Arabs and Christian ceremonies are run in Arabic.
We have to regard the terrorist activities of the unlawful Barazani militia of ethnic clensing of the Arab Aramaic speaking christian villages in Ninavah Vally and Ain Kawa near Arbil. This is far more serious crime. However honour murder has been goung own in the kurdish areas for decades. ?Why is it reported now only
Dr. Hilmi, Manchester, UK
this is a simple matter of control. Not honour, not religion. Young women (children) are traded as a commodity to benefit their fathers' and brothers' prominence and wealth in a community. When a young daughter is "wed" to a 40 year old business man in town, she is property!! We can define these people by any religion that we want, the real question is what value does their culture place on the women in their culture. If you are a woman in a culture (any culture) that views women as property, you have no rights. When will we stop accepting this?
Candice, Albany, USA / New York
frankly these people should not have a place this world.
doolwant, georgetown, guyana
Roger W. Gardner, from Boston, MA; I do not understand the relation between your comment and the subject "Honour’ killings". I can not understand what you mean by "Wrestling With Mohammed". The "Honour’ killings" is about a girl from a Yazidi sect stoned to death by NON MOSLUM PEOPLE. Roger I know you upset about this awful accident as we all do, but try to be wise and not mixing everything. Please do not judge something while you have no sufficient information about it.
Payman, Erbil, Iraq
The article is indeed sickening and despicable those that carried out these acts are horrible people. But do not confuse the acts of these people with Islam, if you want to know about Islam go study Islam don't study the acts of desperate people in poor counties that say they are Muslim. In the same if I want to study Christianity or Capitalism I wouldn't study the acts of Rapists, paedophiles or murderers who call themselves Christian or in some cases Christian Priests!
Islam has been around for about 1500 years do you really think that it would have been so widely adopted if it was an evil religion?
The truth of the matter is that Muslims around the world are losing their Islamic ideology and are reverting back to the local cultural heritage to fill the void. These acts are not the teachings of Islam, rather they come from local culture.
Mohammed Raziq, Birmingham, England
I wonder how long it will be before similar things happen in Birmingham, Bradford, Leicester etc.. and other locations with a high concentration of these people? "Cultural enrichment" is a funny old thing. Perhaps the planning authorities will now ensure that every mosque is built with a proper stoning ground.
Ray, Dartmouth,
I have to agree with Scott (From N.C.) All cultures are not equal, quite frankly, they never have been in terms of human rights and it's absurd to think they ever will be-- Cultures that accept and implement "hounour killings" and a wide variety of deplorable actions aren't worthy of respect. I'm confounded by the fact that members of these cultures seem to think that simply explaining their ideology / belief system to the rest of the world will result in some level of understanding on the part of western cultures. We do indeed live on different planets.
F. Durrer, Alexandria, U.S.A.
Kurdish hillside village of Basshiqa, Your statement is one sided absolutely incorrect and biased. Basshiqa as the name implies is an Arabic town most of the population are Arabs and Christian ceremonies are run in Arabic. I wonder if it has been ethnically clensed by the Kurdish Militias? as the recent events proved in Ninavah valley.
Dr. Hilmi, Manchester, UK
Democracy will thrive like a dream on that nice cultural ground.
Ronnie, PARIS, FRANCE
How can the members of a crazed, self righteous, blood-lusting, mob feel they will 'regain' any form of 'honour' by murdering young girls in love? This is herd mentality at its most backward and ignorant - and apparently condoned by Britain: How? Well the comment above by Eric Campbell of Harrogate, UK answers that question admirably.
Jean Booth, Voorburg, The Netherlands
These practices are simply unacceptable. I don't understand the soft bigotry of the politically correct who think this must be tolerated. Why should there be two standards for what should constitute basic human rights?
Ellen R. Sheeley, Author
"Reclaiming Honor in Jordan"
ERS, California, USA
The very term "honour killing" is offensive to the ears of all civilised human beings, and should not be used. By accepting such terminology, we passively accept the legitimacy of this arrogant violence. The issue at stake is not "honour", but power and control in gerontocratic peasant societies, where women and young people are its victims.
Martin Baldwin-Edwards, Athens, Greece
It is interesting that the people in that area love border skirmishes with Turkey and are prepared to fight the Turks for a homeland. This article suggests to me that they enjoy violence for its own sake. How mistaken we are in the
western democracies to think that all people want to live in peace and prosperity.
Peter, Alice Springs, Australia
I have just written an article on this subject on Political Grind .Com titled "Wrestling With Mohammed". This is the enemy. This is the nature of the evil we fight. And we also fight those amongst us who try, for whatever reasons, to convince us otherwise. One of the most destructive forces in our common Western culture is this multicultural Political Correctness. Unless we soon see the light, and quickly change direction, our wonderful advanced democratic world will be destroyed by the forces of darkness.
Roger W. Gardner, Boston, MA
Meanwhile the King of the Saudis, the most perniciously medieval people on earth, whose practices are an offence to all the civilised world, is entertained by the Queen and fawned over by the money-depraved British government.
eric campbell, harrogate, uk
For those that claim that all cultures are equal and that cultural mores are relative, this story is undeniable irrefutable absolute proof that some cultures are indeed superior, in all senses of the word, to others. No stronger evidence is needed.
Such excessive acts of retribution are not the acts of men; instead they are acts of depraved cowards.
Sickening. Absolutely sickening and despicable.
Scott, Durham, NC, USA