Iraqi court may permit marriage of 12-year-old girl whose mother says was raped and kidnapped
Rights groups say marriages of minors ‘happen regularly’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Protests have taken place outside an Iraqi court which was hearing a case into whether to allow the marriage of a 12-year-old girl to a man, 25.
The case has sparked fury in Iraq, after the girl’s plight was highlighted on social media.
The hearing, in Kadhimiya, south of Baghdad, was adjourned to next week following anger over the case. Activists protested with banners reading “the marriage of minors is a crime against childhood”, after the girl’s mother pleaded for help to halt the wedding.
According to the mother, the young girl was married to her stepmother’s brother, reported Al Bawaba.
She was married despite the legal age of marriage in Iraq being 18, but which can be lowered to 15 in cases of parental or judicial consent, according to charity Save the Children.
"Religious marriages are not permitted outside civil or religious courts but these types of marriages still happen regularly and can be formalised on the payment of a small fine," it said in a recent report, according to AFP.
The mother has urged the court to annul the marriage, in order to provide a “normal life” for her daughter.
Speaking to Fallujah TV, the mother also claimed that her daughter had been “raped” by the man who could soon become her husband, after first being “kidnapped” by her father. The parents of the 12-year-old have subsequently separated.
The case has triggered an uproar on Iraqi social media since videos of the desperate mother crying and pleading for help went viral.
However, the interior ministry for violence against women said in a statement to AFP that its officials had been assured that the girl was not being coerced into marriage.
The case will now be heard on 28 November.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments