This Iraqi Woman TikToker Has Been Shot Dead In Front Of Her Home
Om Fahad was known for her videos posing and dancing to pop music but she still sparked controversy in Iraq because of her tight clothing.
This Iraqi woman TikToker has been shot dead in front of her home.
Ghufran Sawadi, known as Om Fahad on TikTok, was known for her videos posing and dancing to pop music, which gained her thousands of followers.
Although her videos were fun and light-hearted, they sparked controversy in Iraq because of her tight clothing.
She was shot dead by an unidentified man on a motorbike outside her home in Baghdad on the evening of Friday, April 26.
Surveillance footage showed the attacker, seemingly disguised as a food delivery person, approaching Om Fahad's car and firing multiple shots at her.
In 2023, Om Fahad had been sentenced to 6 months in prison for sharing videos that the court ruled undermined "modesty and public morality".
Her sentencing came after the Iraqi government formed a committee to monitor social media sites and clean up content it found to have breached the country’s “morals and traditions”.
Om Fahad is not the first Iraqi influencer to be killed as the government cracks down on online freedoms.
In September 2023, 23-year-old TikToker Noor Alsaffar, who had hundreds of thousands of followers, was also shot dead.
There have also been instances of so-called “honor killings”, with 22-year-old Tiba al-Ali being killed by her father in January 2023.
Iraq’s government said it has set up a “specialised work team” to investigate Om Fahad's death.
More Like This
Kassy Cho
Kassy Cho
