Rezvan Moghaddam

Maryam Taghva, a 16-year-old girl from Ajabshir who had been forced into marriage as
a child, was killed by her 27-year-old husband using multiple blows from a wooden stick.
This crime once again exposes the deadly dimensions of child marriage and the
structural violence against women and girls in Iran.
According to local and human rights reports, on November 17, 2025, Maryam Taghva
died after being transferred to Ajabshir Hospital due to severe injuries. The county
police commander stated that after a report of a “suspicious death” was made to Police
110, officers discovered during their investigation that the perpetrator was her 27-year-
old husband. He fled after committing the crime but was arrested hours later.
Local sources have also reported that the perpetrator had a history of domestic
violence, and his previous marriage had ended because of his abusive behavior.
Violence against Maryam had also continued in the months leading up to the killing,
without any protection being offered to this teenage girl, already a victim of child
marriage and forced marriage. Maryam’s murder is a clear example of the connection
between child marriage, domestic violence, and systemic femicide in Iran. At 16,
Maryam should have been on the path of education and building her future; instead,
existing laws turned her into a “housewife.” Early marriage forces girls into economic
dependency, extreme power imbalance, and controlling violence.
The absence of a comprehensive law to protect women, the lack of criminalization of
domestic violence, and the legality of child marriage together create the conditions for
such killings to be repeated. The lack of statistical transparency and media censorship
also conceal the real scale of violence against women and girls.
The Stop Honor Killings Campaign condemns the killing of Maryam Taghva and
stresses the urgent need for action:
 Raising the minimum legal age of marriage to 18 without exceptions
 Eliminating “guardian’s permission” and “court permission” for child marriage
 Joining the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Women
 Passing a comprehensive law prohibiting violence against women
 Ensuring police, judicial, and social protection
 Transparent and public investigation of this murder case

 Ending the concealment of statistics related to violence against women and
femicide

#Maryam_Taghva

#Ajabshir

#Security_For_Women

#Women_Have_The_Right_To_Live

#No_To_Violence_Against_Women

Follow news in the Stop honor Killings Campaign Telegram group:
https://t.me/stophonorkilling
Support the Stop honor Killings Campaign with Your Donations via PayPal:
https://paypal.me/stophonorkillings?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US

Stop honor Killings Campaign