Eman Sami Maghdid (20) was shot dead by her brother (17) for wearing crop tops on TikTok

Eman Sami Maghdid
Born: 2002
Shot dead: March 6, 2022
Residence: Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan
Origin: Kurdish
Children: none
Perpetrator: brother (17 years)

On Sunday night, March 6, popular TikTok star, Eman Sami Maghdid, known to her 47,000 followers as Mari or Maria, was shot dead by her 17-year-old brother with 8 or 9 bullets on a road in the city of Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Honor is cited here as a motive because the "rebellious" victim is said to have defied conservative Islamic rules by wearing crop tops and a crucifix, speaking her mind, and smoking cigarettes. It is assumed that she wore the crucifix only as a fashion statement and that she had not converted to Christianity.

Police have arrested the brother, as well as another person suspected of sheltering him. We would welcome any leads.

What is an honour killing?

An honour killing is a murder in the name of honour. If a brother murders his sister to restore family honour, it is an honour killing. According to activists, the most common reasons for honour killings are as the victim:

refuses to cooperate in an arranged marriage.
wants to end the relationship.
was the victim of rape or sexual assault.
was accused of having a sexual relationship outside of marriage.

Human rights activists believe that 100,000 honour killings are carried out every year, most of which are not reported to the authorities and some are even deliberately covered up by the authorities themselves, for example because the perpetrators are good friends with local policemen, officials or politicians. Violence against girls and women remains a serious problem in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Serbia and Turkey.

Ralph Geissen

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Ralph Geissen