The Hengaw Human Rights Organization, in a new report highlighting the rising trend of “femicide” in Iran, announced that in the past 10 days, at least 10 women have been killed in various cities across the country.
According to this report, during the first 10 days of August 2024, at least 10 women were killed in the cities of Sib and Saravan (two cases), Shiraz (two cases), Kouhrang, Shahriar, Tehran, Fasa, Rudan, and Zanjan.
Data from a specialized platform on gender-based killings in Iran also shows that in the first half of 2024, the rate of femicide in Iran increased by 60% compared to the same period in the previous year.
Femicide in Iran targets girls and women from all social strata, with these crimes, often committed by male family members, occurring in both urban and rural areas across all levels of socio-economic status.
The highest number of gender-based killings has been recorded in Tehran, a city diverse in terms of ethnicity, society, and economy. Analysis of the age distribution of victims shows that “40% of the victims are young, between 15 and 35 years old, and a wide range of age groups are affected by gender-based killings.”
The majority of femicide perpetrators are male family members, particularly husbands, and many of these killings are due to family disputes.
The Iranian regime uses the term “honor killing” to cover up cases of femicide and filicide, aiming to prevent the spread of news related to these murders. The regime’s laws, culture, and ideology facilitate and, in many cases, encourage violence against women and girls. The regime’s misogynistic laws institutionalize discrimination against women.
