I guess there is some justice. It won’t help Dua but if these men pay a price it might help prevent future attacks on defenseless women and girls.
Authorities in northern Iraq have arrested four people in connection with the “honor killing” last month of a Kurdish teen — a startling, morbid pummeling caught on a mobile phone video camera and broadcast around the world.
The case portrays the tragedy and brutality of honor killings in the Muslim world. Honor killings take place when family members kill relatives, almost always female, because they feel the relatives’ actions have shamed the family.
In this case, Dua Khalil, a 17-year-old Kurdish girl whose religion is Yazidi, was dragged into a crowd in a headlock with police looking on and kicked, beaten and stoned to death last month. (Watch the attack, and what authorities are doing about it Video)
Authorities believe she was killed for being seen with a Sunni Muslim man. She had not married him or converted, but her attackers believed she had, a top official in Nineveh province said. The Yazidis, who observe an ancient Middle Eastern religion, look down on mixing with people of another faith.
You have to love people who look down on mixing with other faiths but happily sanction the brutal murder of young women. I wish there was some way to drag these people about 800 years into the present before another girl dies.
Pamela Varkony is calling for action:
Then I’m going to ask you to DO SOMETHING, anything, it doesn’t matter what…call or email your congressman and senators, bombard the Iraqi Embassy with emails, fax your protest to the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, but please do not be a silent witness to this human tragedy. If we speak with one voice, someone might hear us. If we make enough noise, the people who can do something about this; the governments, the world wide charities, the NGO’s, might respond. If you could save one woman’s life, wouldn’t you at least try?
These brutal murders could be occurring in your city. Not only are they not confined to the Middle East they’re actually on the rise in places like London.
Update:
Global Voices has a roundup of reactions from Kurdish bloggers.
13 Responses
Readers are solely responsible for the comments they post. Comments do not necessarily reflect the opinion or approval of Blogs of War or John Little.
May 12th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
I am SO disturbed by seeing this video. What is her crime, falling in love? My GOD! This is one video that has stood out to me soo much. I pray to God that she is blessed in heavan, and those who were involved deserve strict punishment! Even those who stood there and watched this brutal attack! …This is absolutly insane. If this continues …What is the world coming to? My heart filled condolences go to her family. I truely am soo hurt by watchign this video, I can’t explain how disgusting that was. I will pray for this young girl.
Unknown Name
May 25th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
“We are Human!!!”. We are JACKASS!! We do not raise our voice to protest, we do not raise our hands to protect but we do raise our hands for killing people. We are certainly HUMAN! Please…. please stop terrorism. We have lots of Good things to make, discover or create. We dont need demolition of Innocent Human being. Please….
Download a picture and take a look at her so beautiful face. Then take a look at her thrashed face. What they did to her sweet cute face!!!!! Those full mad, full b******s, F*****g illiterate satan’s must [ought to] receive pain as they gave her. Iam ashamed of myself for becoming a part of Human Being today.
Also do read about SORAYA M.
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Dont feel shame. Dont feel sorrow. Dont even feel the Pain.
Just stand united to stop these terrorisms.
Latest News [Upto Nov 4, 2007]:
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A Human-Made Torn Mother:
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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.”
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.”
The Jackass Killers:
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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.
Her Family faces threat:
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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.
Help:
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Please do anything possible for you to stop these “Honour Killing”. These are not just killing, but these are ‘Terrorisms”. Mind that, this is nothing to do with Religion. This is pure illiteracy, misbelief & mostly “Damaged Brains”. We may forget Dua. We may forget her family. We may forget the killing. But how can we forget this terrorism?
Its Dua’s murder which brought me here. At that time when i saw the video i was really ashamed of myself as a “Human”. Now perhaps Iam not after i found there’s some people really fighting with me. I have limited powers. But still i have mailed a hundred people, telling the murder of Dua. Showed her video. I haven’t for any sympathy from anyone. I didnt asked for help either. I know everyone have their limitations or to them it was just a thriller story! But i really begged them to atleast tell the story or forward the mail which i sent to them, to as many as people possible.
I’ll feel honoured if you all please stand by my side to stop not only stoning but all the gruesome executions that are taking place through out the world right now. Please let me know if, in any way, i can share your workings to stop these barbaric killings.
Iam not a believer of GOD. But now a days Iam a believer of Satan [Which i was being forced to believe recently!!].
July 1st, 2008 at 6:08 pm
don’t give condolences to their relatives, they were part of the crime, she was arrested, and then… when “freed” was given to her uncle for “protection”. her brother and one cousin were part of the killing (on the video, everything is on the video).
this is the most horrible fact on the history. She was killed by her relatives. there are near 10 000 histories like this reported on the last 10 years (good maths! between 3 and 4 BY DAY)
the autopsy always says the same: “Killed to wash away her disgrace”
July 11th, 2008 at 4:08 am
I feel outrageous, sickly in pain for Dua and madly angry at those beasts, whom one cannot call human beings. Satan has many faces and on that day, it showed its ugly face in the bodeis of those sick beasts. One day the will all face God, and I hope for one thing: that God shows them just as much mercy as they showed that sweet innocent girl on that bloody day. may she rest in peace, may God protect her now in heaven and may those beasts suffer the worst of pains in this world and in the next one, endlessly.
August 30th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
crazy fkin bastarz!!!!!!!!!! :@
September 2nd, 2008 at 5:11 pm
These cowards who kill their women have a dumb ass bible, religion and custom.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:04 am
All the bastards who killed DUA should be killed in the same manner.All those beasts should be crushed and stoned to death.Her parents,family and her relatives should be punished first and then all the spectators.
I WISH THEY ALL GET THE DEATH OF STRAY DOGS
October 7th, 2008 at 4:45 am
ITS been more than a year and still there is no clear evidence whether the bastards who killed the helpless innocent young girl are punished or not.Even after an year tooo iam equally disturbed whenever i see her blogs.
ITS A GREAT DISHONOUR TO THE HUMANITY IF SUCH ANIMALS ARE LEFT WITHOUT BEING PUNISHED.TO RESTORE THE HONOUR OF HUMANITY THEY OUGHT TO BE KILLED.I
THINK THIS WOULD ACTUALLY JUSTIFY THE TITLE “HONOUR KILLING” RATHER THAN KILLING INNOCENT HELPLESS GIRLS.
May god bless her and punish each and every bastard who was rejoicing the torture given to her………….
October 30th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
I watched this clip of this innocent helpless and defenceless girl severally and my heart was filled with anger and bitterness and I only uttered a word.
Whosoever that was amongst these people that put this girl to death for no just cause shall see that ansger on GOD!!! and they shall know that God is a true killer when He gets angry!!! May she find a post in heaven with God her Father!!!
November 19th, 2008 at 5:12 am
you know what? the video isn’t available anymore.
I live in Korea. Although I’m not very good at English but I want to write some. I’ve been searching about Du’a Khalil Asward. When I heard about this terrible happening, I was the same age of her (I was 17 too when I watched the video at CNN site). Since the moment that I watched the video, I’ve been trying to get informations about honor killing. Because I wanted to help whatever I can do for the Human Right especially for about girls and women in Iraq. Anyway what I’m trying to say is this. I can’t see or find the video not only here but also at CNN site!
June 27th, 2009 at 2:38 am
[...] What kind of animalistic nature can commit the acts of violence against women shown recently on CNN clip? A 17 year old girl, Dua Khalil, murdered. It was an honor killing. Dua was stoned to death [...]
April 23rd, 2010 at 8:32 pm
As a Kurdish girl, I can say, I am very ashamed of what happened to Dua Khalil Aswad. For many centuries the “honored” killing has been a tool in our society used towards many young, innocent, beautiful girls yet many of them have not been publicized. Taman Shakir, a female activist said “just couple of days ago, a young girl was burned to death and her body was given to a dog” (Kurdishglobe.net.) I am just shocked how a family member could do this sort of crime towards its own relatives. I mean nobody that encounters sense of humanity should tolerate such a crime; moreover, if it comes from a family member, it is very hard to believe. Just recently four men were sentenced to death penalty; two of them being Dua’s brothers for stoning and killing her (Kurdishglobe.net). I am extremely joyful that justice is finally served for Dua and I hope she finds her place in Heaven. I still think that everybody that was in the crowd watching Dua being stoned is responsible for not taking any action to stop those cold-hearted people but to record the tragedy and publish it. Although as a Kurdish girl, I know it is hard for anyone to interfere with family matters but in the video it shows that there are “Police guards” watching the crowded people stoning her and not taking any action. These kinds of crimes should not be tolerated at all in nowhere in the world. The government needs to take the action of making more strict laws about those violators that commit this sort of devastating crimes. These crimes have nothing to do with any religion but rather an ancient tradition that evolved from superior males in the patrilineal era. However, most of the Middle-Eastern countries do follow the “Islamic Law” which is not in favorable of women for most of the time. Those laws need to be changed to what is called “Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness. No one should be stoned to death no matter what he or she did. It is time for the government to change the laws that follow the unintelligent tradition we had one day and support Women’s Rights freedom whether in the Kurdish Region or anywhere else in the world. By doing so will result in the reduction of such awful crimes towards many young, innocent, and beautiful girls like Dua Khalil Aswad.
April 23rd, 2010 at 8:42 pm
I would like to reply back to Amanda that posted her comment on September 2nd, 2008 at 5:11 pm that stated, “These cowards who kill their women have a dumb ass bible, religion and custom.”
Amanda, unfortunately, you have wrong ideology about the Kurdish religion. In fact, these kinds of killings are not tolerated in any religion but in a tradition that was a male dominant society. There is no place in the Yazidi bible (an ancient Kurdish religion that Dua Khalil belong to) that states honor killings beings enacted to any females. This tradition is still present among those that are highly uneducated and have no respect for female except their own selfishness. Yes, I do agree with you that they are cowards for doing such a crime, but when it comes to religion; I would tell you to research the religion before you speak of it. I think killing of a human being has to do with a person itself. For instance, even in America crimes happen although it is suppose to be the last place for such act. The only difference between United States and other countries is the “rule of law” that is the guideline for every citizen to follow. On the contrary, in the Middle-Eastern countries, the rule comes from the Islamic Law often called Sharia which disadvantages women most of the time due to the fact it is manmade. Once again, everything has to do with the law and tradition but not religion.