Leila Hussein

Who was Leila Hussein?

Leila Hussein was an Iraqi woman living in Basra who came to public attention in March 2008, when her husband killed their teenage daughter — reportedly with the approval of local police — because she had formed a friendship with a British soldier stationed in the city. In an unusual move for an Iraqi woman, Hussein spoke out against the so-called "honour killing," left her husband and went into hiding. She had intended to leave Iraq for Jordan with the help of an Iraqi women's rights group.

She was shot dead in Basra by unknown assailants on May 17, 2008, the day she had planned to leave the country. The Observer reports that local police are not certain that she was the target of the shooting.