Iraqi blogger's killing by father sparks calls for stronger protections against gender-based violence

An Iraqi blogger was strangled to death by her father after returning to Iraq to watch the Gulf Cup, according to local media reports.

Taiba Ali, 20, had been living in Turkey, where she had fled after being raped by her brother in 2017, according to Iraqi activists groups.

Tiba had reportedly met a Syrian man in Turkey who she hoped to marry, however had yet to convince her family of the proposal, according to the Iraq-based Isen rights group.

After speaking to her mother, Tiba returned to Iraq in the hope of convincing her family and to watch the Gulf Cup.

Following Tiba’s death, the Support Her Organisation for Women’s Rights group released recordings of the slain blogger saying that she had informed police about death threats from her family.

After strangling his daughter to death, Tiba's father turned himself in to police and admitted to the killing, according to local media.

The killing has sparked outrage on social media, with thousands of users calling for justice for the slain blogger.

Rights groups have also called for tougher legislation to protect women from gender-based violence.

“Until the Iraqi authorities adopt robust legislation to protect women and girls from gender-based violence, we will inevitably continue to witness horrific murders such as that suffered by Tiba Ali, at the hands of her own father," Aya Majzoub, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement on Friday.

“Iraq has failed to criminalise domestic violence despite an increase in reporting of incidents of domestic violence by national NGOs. Shockingly, the Iraqi penal code still treats leniently so called “honour crimes’ comprising violent acts such as assault and even murder. There is also no effective system in place for reporting domestic violence nor adequate shelters to protect women and girls."