Target: Gays
Media reports from Iraq show that gays have become a major target of Islamist death squads running rampant in the country. Homosexuality has been labeled a “crime against Islam,” and gays are being targeted for physical violence and murder.
In 2005, Iraq’s leading Muslim cleric, the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, called for the execution of gay Iraqis. The followers of rebel leader Muqtada al-Sadr have also been active in attacks on gays. In addition to gays, women and various minority groups have come under attack, once again proving that hate does not recognize borders.
Gay rights activist Peter Tatchell warns that recent killings of gays reflect on Iraqi society at large and the fate of a country overflowing with Islamic extremism:
“The execution of lesbian and gay Iraqis by Islamist death squads and militia is symptomatic of the fate that will befall all Iraqis if the fundamentalists continue to gain influence. The summary killing of queers is the canary in the mine – a warning of the barbarism to come.”
To learn more about the plight of GLBT individuals around the world, visit Human Rights Watch
February 25th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
Hi, I enjoy your blog. There was an interesting article in Feb. GQ on gays in Iraq.
February 26th, 2007 at 10:19 pm
Great info. Keep up the good work.