Trigger warning: this article contains references to physical and sexual violence
The killing of a 15-year-old Iraqi girl is sparking outrage and renewed warnings about the dangers of forced child marriage and so-called “honor” crimes in Iraq. Kawthar Bashar al-Husayjawi was reportedly shot 10 times and killed by male relatives after refusing a second forced marriage. Her killing has become a symbol of the risks faced by girls trapped between child marriage, gender-based violence and weak legal protections. Kawthar’s story starkly demonstrates how laws and social norms can combine to leave girls vulnerable to exploitation and modern slavery, sanctioned by those who should be protectors.
A childhood cut short
Kawthar was removed from school and married at age 13 to a man significantly older than her. According to accounts from her family, she endured a year of violence before returning home and eventually securing a divorce through the courts in late 2025. However, her freedom was short-lived. Soon afterward, relatives arranged another marriage, this time to a cousin allegedly involved in criminal activity.
Despite her objections, family members approved the marriage, insisting that her wishes did not matter. As the wedding approached, Kawthar fled.
According to family accounts, she was then tragically abducted by a neighbor and held her against her will for several days. While she was held, Kawthar said her neighbor subjected her to terrible things that she didn’t want to disclose. And although surveillance footage supported that she had been taken against her will, relatives refused to believe she did not go willingly.
More concerned with her “honor” than her well being, her father, uncle and fiancé allegedly interrogated her before taking her to an isolated area outside Baghdad and shot her. They then threw her body into a pit and covered it with a little dirt. Afterwards, the men joined others in going out on the streets to dance and celebrate her death.
Killed for “nothing more than trying to survive”
Heartbroken by what happened to Kawthar, an anonymous female family member is speaking out.
Iraq’s new laws permitting children as young as nine years old to marry is terrifying to me, because a child pulled out of school and pushed into early marriage becomes more vulnerable and less able to protect herself or object to the violence she is subjected to.
Kawthar’s death comes amid growing concern over child marriage in Iraq. Earlier this year, rights advocates, including Freedom United, condemned legal changes to marriage legislation. Changes that could allow girls as young as nine to be married under some interpretations of religious personal status laws. Survivors and advocates warned the reforms would increase the risk of abuse and exploitation while reducing girls’ access to education and independence.
Globally, child marriage rates have declined in recent decades. However, progress is increasingly under threat from conflict, economic instability and efforts to weaken legal protections for girls. Legal setbacks like those in Iraq threaten to reverse years of hard-won gains. The same anonymous relative of Kawthar shared that she and other women in the extended family sought justice for the killing. They began sending Kawthar’s name and photo and the pictures of her killers to media pages and platforms.
She stated:
(I was) hoping for justice for this child…I was afraid that the case would be buried like the hundreds of other stories in which women and young girls die for nothing more than trying to survive.
Renewed calls for justice and reform
Kawthar’s killing has intensified calls for stronger protections for girls and women in Iraq. Advocates argue that child marriage, forced marriage and honor-based violence are deeply interconnected. When girls are removed from school and denied control over their futures, they become far more vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
Add your voice to ours and call on governments everywhere to strengthen laws that protect children from forced marriage and gender-based violence.
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