Economic hardship, drug abuse fuel Iraq’s domestic violence surge
Shafaq News – Baghdad
Iraq has recorded a sharp surge in domestic violence, with nearly 14,000 cases reported in the first half of 2024 alone.
The Strategic Center for Human Rights documented 13,857 incidents, following 18,436 in 2023 and 21,595 in 2022, pushing the three-year total above 53,000.
Husbands attacking wives accounted for 75% of cases, 17% involved wives assaulting husbands, 6% stemmed from parental abuse of children, and 2% targeted the elderly. Experts warn that households are increasingly becoming centers of violence as family disputes escalate into physical attacks.
The center also identified economic hardship, lack of family education, weakened religious influence, infidelity, drug abuse, and misuse of social media as key drivers of the crisis.
Read more: From love to bloodshed: Iraq’s family violence epidemic
Physical assault, the report noted, remained the most common form of abuse in 2024, followed by sexual and verbal violence, with Baghdad registering the highest share at 31% and Saladin the lowest at 5%.
Citing figures from Iraq’s Interior Ministry, the center said that 3,101 suspects were released on bail, 100 were convicted, and over 4,000 cases were resolved through reconciliation.
The center urged government agencies, religious authorities, schools, and civil society to intensify public awareness campaigns, pressing parliament to pass long-stalled legislation criminalizing domestic violence, a demand amplified by grassroots activists, including a women-led protest in Erbil under the slogan “Enough is Enough.”
Read more: From Canvas to Courtroom: Iraq’s dual battle for women’s safety
