Islamic extremism has been on the rise since the United States’ invasion of Iraq. One telling example is the story of, a 17-year-old girl in Iraq who was dragged, from a house where she was staying, by nine men, of which many were her relatives and stoned to death while hundreds of people watched. The reason for the stoning was that she had committed an “honor crime” by having a relationship with a Sunni man, something that was an unforgivable offense as a someone who lived in the non-Muslim Yezidi community. Even though security forces had witnessed the event, they did not intervene.

This is not an isolated case by any means. Honor killings have increased exponentially, especially in Kurdistan, a place often depicted as a model of democracy for the rest of Iraq to follow. These crimes are rarely taken seriously and those responsible are often given very lenient sentences.

This is just another example of how the United States is failing in its attempt to establish democracy in Iraq. The invasion only made the area more receptive to Islamic extremism and increased violence.

For more information about this crime and/or take action, go to Amnesty’s website:
http://web.amnesty.org/actforwomen/svaw-060607-action-eng.
Other resources:
-“Fighting for women’s rights in Iraq.” CNN. http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/06/26/pysk.mohammed/
-“Using rape as a weapon.” International Herald Tribune. http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/08/opinion/edking.php
-“Women Face Increased Violence in Kurdistan.” Electronic Iraq. http://electroniciraq.net/news/aiddevelopment/Women_Face_Increased_Violence_in_Kurdistan-3154.shtml

Nastya Petrovitch also blogs at http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/candy7468

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