Woman shot dead by her brother in Duhok: police

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A suspect is still at large a day after a woman was killed by her brother in Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province in an incident that appears to be related to a dispute over money, according to police.

A 45-year-old woman was killed on Wednesday in “a social issue in their home with her brother,” Nashhat Salman, spokesperson of Zakho district police told Rudaw’s Yousif Musa. 

The woman, whose name was not revealed to the public, is from Zakho’s Batifa sub-district and “had previously filed a complaint against her brother about inheritance, money, salaries and such issues,” said Salman.

The woman died at the scene after being shot four times in the chest, Salman said. The police do not know if the perpetrator had a license for his gun, or whether “he was Peshmerga or police.”

On Thursday morning, the suspect is still at large and there is a warrant out for his arrest. 

“The body of the woman was transferred to Zakho forensics and it will later be sent to Duhok [city] forensics so that further investigation is done on the body to reveal the facts of the incident,” the spokesperson added.

Gun violence is a widespread problem in the Kurdistan Region, with the government’s gun-control measures doing little to counter the proliferation of weapons. Civilians can often go through personal connections to get permission to carry firearms. Weapons, including sniper rifles and machine guns, can also be bought on the black market.

In May, Interior Minister Reber Ahmed said the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) plans to tighten its gun control laws, but cannot promise a complete end to gun markets.

2020 saw an increase in reported gun violence across the Kurdistan Region and this year the numbers appear to be even higher.

Last month, one person was killed and another injured when skirmishes broke out between residents of two villages in Erbil province’s Choman district, in a dispute over land. In April, a woman was killed when she got caught in crossfire, again in a dispute over land. Zina Majid was shot while standing in front of her parents’ kitchen window in Shekhan.

Sulaimani authorities in July decided to limit gun ownership by revoking licenses not authorized by the Ministry of Interior, provincial authorities, or district administrations.