Honor killing shocked Iran: Father beheaded teenage daughter for wrong choice of man

A man in northern Iran has been arrested on charges of murdering his own 13-year-old daughter. In connection with the murder, a wave of indignation swept through the country, and the Iranian president called for tougher legislation on violence against women.

13-year-old Iranian Romina Ashrafi was beheaded in her sleep by her own father. As the criminal said, it was an "honor killing" — for a young resident of the village of Khovai in Talesh district, it became a punishment for the fact that she intended to run away from home with her lover, a man much older than her.

Her lover, 34-year-old Bahamn Khavari, 34, and Romina's father was furious when he learned about their relationship and that Romina wanted to marry him.

He stated that it was an "honor killing" that washed away from the family the damage that Romina had done to her honor. He was arrested for murder and faces up to 10 years in prison. However, he does not face the death penalty: after all, only blood relatives can demand the execution of the murderer, and they will not demand retribution.

The news of Romina's death shocked Iran. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has called on the government to toughen the punishment for so-called "honor killings" by adopting the necessary amendments to the legislation as soon as possible. Such murders occur very often: according to some reports, they account for up to 20% of all murders in Iran.

According to Iranian law, a girl can get married at 13, although the average age of marriage in the country is 23.