News Center – Iraq has recently witnessed a significant rise in domestic violence cases, raising widespread concern among social and human rights circles. This phenomenon reflects growing social and economic challenges facing Iraqi families, in addition to a lack of awareness of women’s rights and legal protection mechanisms.

The Observatory’s 2025 domestic violence report clarified that the published figures include only officially registered cases in which victims dared to report the abuse, and that the actual number is much higher.

According to the report, domestic violence in Iraq reached a dangerous level in 2025, with 36,289 cases recorded compared to 14,000 in 2024 — an increase of nearly 150% in just one year.

In cases of violence against parents, sons were responsible for 3,112 incidents. Among siblings, there were 1,583 assaults by brothers against their sisters, the report stated.

Violence against children

The report indicated that violence against children has reached alarming levels. Fathers committed 1,282 cases, in addition to 2,992 other recorded incidents of various forms of domestic abuse.

The Observatory pointed to the absence of specific legislation to combat domestic violence and to Article 41 of the Iraqi Penal Code — which allows what is described as a “right to discipline” — as key factors behind the rise in violence. It also stressed that the lack of government shelters and tribal pressures have forced many victims into silence, warning that this situation signals a worsening cycle of violence in the future.