Femicide in Mashhad, Iran: Young woman killed by her fiancé

Zeynab
Age: 17
Stabbed to death: November 30, 2023
Residence: Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan
Origin: Iran
Children: None
Perpetrator: Fiancé

On Thursday, November 30, 2023, a 17-year-old Afghan girl, identified as Zeynab, was murdered by her 22-year-old fiancé on a street in Mashhad, a city in northeastern Iran, while returning to her parents’ house. The accused publicly stabbed the 17-year-old girl 20 times with a knife.

According to the victim's brother, the two were engaged and in the process of getting married. But according to their customs, the fiancé should have paid mahr, and the fiancé was given 2-3 times to fulfill the mahr payment, but he did not succeed. This was the reason for the dispute.

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.