Shafaq News – Najaf

A woman in Iraq’s Najaf province was raped by a police officer and two members of his unit, a security source reported to Shafaq News on Sunday.

According to the source, the woman was assaulted at an industrial site outside the provincial capital, an area largely deserted at night.

The Interior Ministry later dismissed the two contract policemen involved in the attack, while the patrol’s commanding officer was reassigned to a border area, the source confirmed.

The Forensic Medicine Department documented 421 sexual assault cases across Iraq in the first half of 2024, including 327 female victims and 94 male victims. Rights groups, however, warn that the actual number is likely higher, as many victims do not report incidents due to stigma or fear of reprisals.