Killings of women in Iran: 18 women killed between 23 September and 13 October 2026

Killings of women in Iran accelerated in the Iranian month of Mehr 1405: at least 84 women were killed between the start of the Iranian year on 21 March 2026 and 13 October, and 18 of these killings took place in the first 21 days of Mehr alone (23 September to 13 October). The figures come from a Radio Farda review of published reports and are not official statistics; the Islamic Republic publishes no comprehensive data on killings of women.

According to the review, in 75 cases the victim knew her killer, and in 45 cases the killer was her current or former husband or partner, meaning that more than half of the women over 18 were killed by their husband or partner. Of the 12 girls under 18, eight were killed by their father, brother or a blood relative. In 10 cases, the motive reported was the rejection of a marriage or relationship or the woman's decision to separate, and seven of these ten killings were carried out with firearms. In 13 cases, the killer tried to make the killing look like "suicide". Two women were also killed by police gunfire. The names of 17 women killed in Mehr have not even been published.

Maryam Yarmohammadi: the latest case

Maryam Yarmohammadi, a 28-year-old woman from Lorestan living on Qeshm, was killed on 5 October by her brother with the help of his wife. Her brother has been arrested. The killing recalls the cases of Romina Ashrafi, a 14-year-old girl killed by her father in 2020, who was sentenced to only nine years in prison, and Mona Heydari, whose severed head was paraded through Ahvaz after her murder.

A law that shields the killers

The Islamic Penal Code leaves part of this violence effectively unpunished. Under Article 301 of the code, a father or paternal grandfather who kills his child is not subject to retribution (qisas) and faces only three to 10 years in prison. In about 70 percent of reports the motive is not mentioned at all, and many killings are recorded as "family disputes".

The bill on "Preserving Dignity and Protecting Women against Violence" has still not become law after six years. The bill first went to parliament in 2020, was approved again by the cabinet in September 2024, and parliament's social committee announced its approval in the Iranian month of Dey 1404 (December 2025–January 2026); but according to the spokesman of the Guardian Council, no approved text had reached the council for review as of September 2026.

A regime that is quick to issue orders restricting women in sports venues and monitoring the hijab of women lawyers has still not passed a law to protect women's lives from domestic violence.

Since the start of the Iranian year, a woman has been killed in Iran roughly every two to three days, and most of the killers were those closest to the victim.