The Killing of 17-Year-Old Piranshahr Girl by Her Father Over “honor”

By: Rezvan Moghaddam

On Saturday, January 25, 2025, a 17-year-old girl named Kani Abdollahi from Mashkan
village in Piranshahr, West Azerbaijan Province, was killed by her father in an “honor
killing.”
According to Mehr News Agency, Colonel Younes Arjmand stated: “A disagreement
between a father and daughter in one of the villages of this county led to the young girl’s
death. The father, in a fit of rage, stabbed his daughter in the chest, and she lost her life
to her injuries due to the severity of the wound.”
However, a reliable source reported that Kani was severely injured by multiple stab
wounds inflicted by her father after accusations of her association with a boy. She later
died at Piranshahr Hospital due to the severity of her injuries. The 42-year-old father,
who murdered his daughter, has been arrested.
Government-affiliated media and officials often reduce “honor killings” to “family
disputes” to deny the state’s role in such crimes and to prevent widespread attention or
collective efforts to confront them.
honor killings in Iran are rooted not only in patriarchal traditions but also in the Islamic
Republic’s policies that reinforce gender discrimination. By legitimizing men’s control
over women, the Iranian regime fosters a culture of violence against women,
contributing to the rise in honor killings.
The Islamic regime has enacted laws that grant fathers, husbands, and brothers’
authority over women. Article 301 of the Islamic Penal Code significantly reduces the
penalty for fathers who kill their children, effectively creating a safe environment for
honor killers. In Kani’s case, her father likely acted knowing that he would face little to
no punishment or a short prison sentence under this law. This killing is yet another
glaring example of Iran’s weak legal framework for protecting women.
Iranian laws on honor killings are inadequate and conservative. The Islamic Penal Code
designates fathers as the “blood guardians” of their children, which substantially lowers
their criminal liability in such cases. Moreover, the absence of specific legislation against
honor killings prevents courts from making effective decisions to prevent these crimes.
The ideology of the Islamic Republic, which defines women as the “honor” of men,
perpetuates a culture of honor-based violence and serves as a tool for social control.
This ideology has relegated women to being under constant surveillance by male family
members, rather than being recognized as independent citizens.
Iranian society faces entrenched patriarchal structures that normalize honor killings
within local cultural contexts. Misogynistic teachings in media, television shows, school
textbooks, sexist advertising billboards, and speeches by clerics using religious
platforms all contribute to the increasing prevalence of honor killings.

State-run media consistently depict women as “objects in need of protection.”
Campaigns likening women to candy and men to flies are stark examples of the Islamic
Republic’s gender-biased and demeaning attitudes toward women and men.
Kani’s murder is just one example of hundreds of honor killings—a grim reality occurring
under discriminatory laws and patriarchal culture. This tragedy must serve as a wake-up
call for fundamental changes in Iran’s political, legal, and social structures.

#StopHonorKillingsCampaign

#DomesticViolence

#KaniAbdollahi

#Piranshahr

#WomenAreNoOne’sHonor

Follow news in the Stop honor Killings Campaign Telegram group:
https://t.me/stophonorkilling
Stop honor Killings Campaign

You may also like...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *