“The feminist struggle is a global struggle, where we should be holding hands, we should be creating our forums and building our strengths and I will not say 'we can not overcome'— we will overcome, but when we will overcome, that is the question.”
This week, we are mourning the loss of our friend, Yanar Mohammed, a prominent Iraqi women's rights activist and human rights defender. Yanar was murdered by gunmen outside her home in Baghdad on Monday, March 2nd after returning to Iraq from Canada a few days prior. We extend our condolences to her loved ones, her Iraqi community, and the global community of courageous feminist leaders and activists who everyday risk their lives to advance women's rights, gender equity, human rights, and democratic movements. The heinous act of othering and violence that took Yanar’s life brings into acute focus the very real risks and threats that exist as we endeavor to build a better world. Yanar’s legacy has and will continue to shape civic life and social and political progress of her home country by transforming the lives of Iraqi women through legal reforms, shifting social norms, building global solidarity, and bringing forth a future for Iraq rooted in feminist and secular democratic values and human rights for all.
Yanar was an internationally known Iraqi feminist and co-founder and director of the Organization of Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI). She opened the first shelters for women in Iraq and dedicated her life’s work to ending violence against women in a context where Islamic opposition groups, governing institutions, and militias target women. She states that on her return to Iraq following the US invasion, “When I went back home to set up this organization [OWFI], I thought my goal was women’s freedom, and it turned out that this concept was an atomic bomb by itself.” She was a courageous advocate for women's rights within Iraq and through international platforms and she led these efforts despite threats to her personal safety. Yanar divided her time between Canada and Iraq, and attended the University of Toronto. She received the Gruber Prize for Women's Rights in 2008 and Norway's Rafto Prize in 2016.
Yanar participated in the Institute’s Arab Women & Feminist Visions for Equity and Belonging webinar series addressing the theme of Rights, Equity, Dignity & Social Justice which coincided with International Women's Day in March of 2025. This was the inaugural event of the Institute's Global South Lab. It was a privilege to collaborate with her and to share her incredible work and efforts with OBI’s community in the US and around the world.
We invite you to celebrate with us the life and legacy of Yanar. We honor her steadfast, resilient, justice-driven, and kind spirit that guided her work and journey on this planet and that not only influenced, but saved the lives of many. You can watch the recording of our webinar and learn more about her using the links below.
Allah yerhamha, may she rest in peace.
Additional Resources:
- DemocracyNow! Interviews with Yanar Mohammed
- Nobel Women’s Initiative, interview with Yanar Mohammed
- Meet Yanar Mohammed, Iraq
- The Rafto Prize 2016
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Disclaimer: The views in this statement represent the Othering & Belonging Institute's Global Justice Program and does not speak on behalf of UC Berkeley, or any other campus in the University of California system.