This profile includes individuals at risk of honour-based violence, persons transgressing cultural, social or religious norms, persons in inter-sect/inter-ethnic marriages, and persons displaying westernised behaviour. See also 2.16.4 Women acting in the public sphere. For further guidance on violence against women and children see also the profiles 2.16 Women and 2.17 Children.

COI summary

a. Honour-based violence and tribal sanctions

COMMON ANALYSIS
Last updated: June 2022

[Targeting 2019, 3.1.1, 3.5.3, 3.6; KSEI 2020, 10.5.3; Actors of protection, 6.4, 9.1; Targeting 2022, 6, 7.4]

Transgressions of family honour, linked to cultural beliefs about women’s virginity or purity, have led to families and tribes carrying out honour-based violence against family members, usually females. Perpetrators are often male relatives or family members, who carry out honour killings for a range of ‘crimes’, which span from sexual relations outside marriage, including instances of rape or other forms of sexual violence, refusing to marry a man chosen by the family or marrying against the family’s wishes, to inappropriate appearances or unacceptable contact or dating with males outside the family, among others. Honour killings are rarely investigated and punished.

This issue affects all parts of the country, cutting through religious and ethnic divides, with a strong tribal element and linked with the strong patriarchal society. The practice is reportedly prevalent throughout the country, though its frequency has reportedly decreased in some geographical areas such as cities, while it is more widespread in more conservative areas, such as the southern part of the country.

Iraq lacks comprehensive legislation to protect from and punish violence against women, and it allows for honour as a mitigating circumstance. The Iraqi Penal Code of 1969 states, under Article 409, that ‘[a]ny person who surprises his wife in the act of adultery or finds his girlfriend in bed with her lover and kills them immediately or one of them or assaults one of them so that he or she dies or is left permanently disabled is punishable by a period of detention not exceeding 3 years. It is not permissible to exercise the right of legal defence against any person who uses this excuse nor do the rules of aggravating circumstance apply against him’. This article was suspended in the KRI in 2000. However, implementation of the laws regulating honour crimes in KRI is impeded by the patriarchal mentality of the society, as well as the discriminatory mindset of the judiciary towards women.

There are reports that persons who transgress cultural, social or religious norms face harsh punishment by their tribes. It has, for example, been reported that behaviour on social media, such as clicking on a ‘like’ button of an ‘objectionable’ Facebook page, could lead to tribal sanctions, including significant financial compensation; according to the source, there is agreement amongst various tribes in southern Iraq on the subject.

Tribes in a number of governorates have also forcibly evicted families associated with ISIL and confiscated their property (see the profile 2.1 Persons (perceived to be) affiliated with ISIL).

Persons who do not comply with the will of their tribe may be killed, ostracised or disowned and expelled from the tribe and be forbidden to reside in specific areas.

With regard to tribal feuds and conflict resolution, see the profile 2.19 Persons involved in and affected by blood feuds in the context of tribal conflict.

b. Persons in inter-sect/inter-ethnic marriages

COMMON ANALYSIS
Last updated: June 2022

[Targeting 2019, 3.10, 3.11; Targeting 2022, 4.1.3]

The provisions of the legislation establish the rules of marriage between women and men according to their confession.

Inter-sect marriages between Sunni and Shia were and continue to be common in Iraq. Due to the politicisation of sectarian differences since 2006, there has been a decrease in Sunni-Shia marriages. However, they are still not unusual. There are incidents of violence due to inter-sect marriages, although the reasons for it are often intertwined with other causes, such as honour-based violence.

Marriages between Arabs and Kurds are very rare, especially in northern Iraq, where sectarian and ethnic tensions are high. Arab-Kurdish couples are stigmatised by both Arabs and Kurds. Nevertheless, due to displacement in the context of the ISIL crisis, it has become slightly more common.

In the KRI, especially women may be victims of honour killing due to being in an inter-sect marriage.

c. Persons displaying westernised behaviour

COMMON ANALYSIS
Last updated: June 2022

[Targeting 2019, 1.1.2, 1.14, 3.12; Targeting 2022, 6.1]

The concept of westernisation in Iraq can be described as an umbrella term of groups that can be perceived as transgressing moral codes. This sub-profile refers to persons who are perceived as ‘Westernised’ due, for example, to their behaviour, appearance, occupation and expressed opinions that contravene the local culture.

Persons who are seen as not conforming with the local social and cultural norms by displaying ‘westernised’ behaviour have been subjected to threats and attacks by individuals in society, as well as by militia groups. PMF are targeting people that show signs of deviating morality according to their interpretation of Shia norms, sometimes with the support of the Shia community. LGBTIQ persons, Christians, alcohol sellers and artists are among those reportedly targeted.

Men and especially women face pressure to conform to conservative standards on personal appearances. Shia militias in Baghdad and Basrah seek to enforce strict dress codes and are responsible for violent attacks on women whose dress styles are considered inappropriate. Women have been targeted for assassination by militias, for example, due to wearing the ‘wrong’ clothes, or (allegedly) being connected to prostitution. According to a 2017 report, ‘some Muslims continued to threaten women and girls, regardless of their religious affiliation, for refusing to wear the hijab, for dressing in Western-style clothing, or for not adhering to strict interpretations of Islamic norms governing public behaviour’.

Individuals’ presence on social media can be perceived as ‘amoral’, i.e. leading an amoral lifestyle in the way they behave. They can be perceived as wearing provocative clothing, showing sexuality, being unmarried and flirting, engaging in sexual acts before marriage.

Selling alcohol in Iraq was framed in terms of morality and religion. Alcohol vendors in particular may be subject to assassination, death threats or forced out of their community. Targeting of places such as liquor stores, massage parlours and nightclubs with the aim of fighting immorality has been reported. Iran-backed and pro-Iranian militias started ‘patrolling Islamic morality’ and warned Iraqi security forces - which had increased their presence in order to protect liquor stores that were being attacked - to stop protecting these shops. Yazidis and Christians, being the main importers and sellers of alcohol, are mostly affected.

For guidance on LGBTIQ persons and Atheists, see the profiles 2.12 LGBTIQ persons and 2.14 Individuals considered to have committed blasphemy and/or apostasy. For guidance on women active in the public sphere, see 2.16.4 Women acting in the public sphere.

Risk analysis

The acts to which individuals under this profile could be exposed are of such severe nature that they would amount to persecution (e.g. violent attacks, killings).

Not all individuals under this profile would face the level of risk required to establish a well-founded fear of persecution. The individual assessment of whether there is a reasonable degree of likelihood for the applicant to face persecution should take into account risk-impacting circumstances, such as: the moral and/or societal norm transgressed, gender (the risk is higher for women), conservative environment, area of origin, perception of traditional gender roles by the family and society, etc.

Nexus to a reason for persecution^[13]

Available information indicates that for this profile, the individual circumstances of the applicant need to be taken into account to determine whether a nexus to a reason for persecution can be substantiated.

In the cases of inter-sect/inter-ethnic marriages, as well as in individual cases of persons targeted by Shia militias, persecution may be for reasons of religion and/or race (ethnicity).

In the case of persons transgressing social norms, persecution may also be for reasons of membership of a particular social group, based on their common background which cannot be changed (perceived past behaviour) and/or a shared characteristic or belief that is so fundamental to identity or conscience that they should not be forced to renounce it (opposition to cultural, social or religious norms and the unwillingness to comply with them). They may also be considered to have a distinct identity in the context of Iraq, because they may be perceived as being different by the surrounding society.