Fear and Survival: Being LGBTQ in Iraq
For Iraq's LGBTQ community, life is dangerous. Anna Foster meets three young LGBTQ people and hears about the abuses they've experienced and their hopes for the future.
For Iraq's LGBTQ community, life is difficult and dangerous. In a society that sees itself as modest, traditional and deeply religious, many refuse to believe in anything other than heterosexuality. Being gay or non-binary doesn't break any laws, but people who are still live in fear. Every day the community faces physical violence, or being murdered if their secret is uncovered. Sexual assaults are also common, and the toll on their mental health is severe. Anna Foster meets three young LGBTQ people in Iraqi Kurdistan and hears about the abuses they've experienced and their hopes for the future. In a place where many people believe society is changing and modernising, that's far from the reality they're living through.