Brazil: 'We have a George Floyd every 23 minutes'

Today, I want you to read about:

• The murder of trans woman Doski Azad in Kurdistan, Iraq
• Iceland will stop hunting whales
• Brazil is demanding justice for Moïse Mugenyi Kabagambe from Democratic Republic of Congo
• Plus: bye-bye government in Montenegro, China's Uighur torchbearer, an update on Ecuador's horrible landslide, Morocco's Rayan and an Amnesty International report on Israel

Now without further ado, here's what happened last week:

what happened last week

We are mourning the death of Doski Azad -- a trans woman in Kurdistan
Doski Azad, a 23-year-old trans woman, was found dead last week in Duhok (in northern Iraq), Kurdistan last week.

(For my German readers, I talked about this on Die Wochendämmerung last week, listen here.)

Wait. What happened?
Azad was found in a village somewhere outside of Duhok. Police say that she had been shot in the head and chest, a day or two before they discovered her body; thanks to a tipoff from her brother. 'My own brother Chakdar killed my sister,' he told police. He's now the suspect in the murder -- and probably has fled the country by now. The Kurdish authorities are now working with Interpol to locate him.

Why this matters:
Trans people are living a very dangerous life, in Kurdistan and worldwide. In total, 375 transgender people were killed last year (in 2020, it was 350). It was the deadliest year of violence against gender diverse people.

Tell me more about Doski Azad
She was a makeup artist at a salon and wanted to live an ordinary life in Duhok. "She was a peaceful and popular person who never wanted to see anyone sad," her friends say.

Why did she die?
Activists and her friends believe it was patriarchy, specifically anti-trans violence. Azad had a difficult relationship with her religiously über-traditional family after she came out as trans years ago. Many relatives chose not to accept her gender identity. Her friends say that some of her family members even threatened to kill her a few times; her brother Chakdar being one of them. She had even turned to police, asking for help -- but no luck.

How dangerous is life for trans people in Kurdistan?
Very. In an interview with Insider, human-rights activist Pishkoo Zandi said that, many times, Kurdish media do not report on the death of trans people. "The governmental system is homophobic, and the media is homophobic, too," Zandi said. "They don't want to say anything about us."

• Good to know: Another transgender person was killed by family members in July. Activists say, 'nothing has happened. Nobody has been arrested yet.'

What now?
Duhok police is looking for Doski Azad's brother. The United States government is (basically) like, 'ok good, we're keeping an eye on this.' However, Zhiar Ali, founder of Kurdish LGBTQ+ platform Yeksani, says that the Kurdish government must do more. I talked to him last week; read the full interview here on Patreon; it's available for everyone.

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Behind the scenes (My commentary):
Doski Azad's case is nowhere to be found on mainstream German media. If you are a journalist, consider reporting on this story. I can help.

**We decided to stop hunting whales for money in...