A combo image of Maryam Al Rukabi before the attack.

Gulf Today Report

The Iraqi girl, Maryam Al Rukabi, did not expect that her story would be the talk of the media, after her life turned into a tragedy just because she refused a marriage proposal by man, so her beautiful face was burned with acid, to live with permanent suffering, while the perpetrator remained unpunished, according to Iraqi media.

The student of the College of Fine Arts in Iraq, Maryam, who is famous among her friends as the “Princess”, won the sympathy of millions, after she and her family appeared on a media station recounting her tragedy that occurred 6 months ago.

A young man asked the girl to marry him, but she refused due to his moral character, so he decided to take revenge on her in a horrific way.

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At night, he crept into her house in the Mansour district of Baghdad. 

He poured acid on her face, and fled the scene.

The media quoted Maryam’s father, as saying: “My mother and I were at work, and Maryam, her brother and his wife were at home, when the criminal entered the house and stole her phone, and poured the acid substance on her while she was sleeping.”

He pointed out that the perpetrator came at night, masked, despite passing in front of security points, and passers-by on the street leading to their house, but no one stopped him.

He sadly continued, "Maryam lives a tragic life, and seven months have passed since the accident, and the deformities that occurred in her body have not been cured."

The father accused the judiciary of failing to investigate the crime that took place 6 months ago.

Maryam's story caused widespread anger in the Iraqi street, after her story was circulated in the media, and the "Princess" earned the sympathy of millions on social media, who demanded that the most severe punishment be imposed on the offender through the hashtag “Save Princess Maryam.”

The Iraqi judiciary, in turn, denied the report of inaction, and issued an official statement on Thursday, clarifying the details of the incident.

The statement of the Supreme Judicial Council stated that the investigative judge in charge of the case of the student, Maryam, who was subjected to an accident of burning with acid clarified the continuation of the investigation procedures against the accused in the crime.

The statement pointed out that after the victim's family filed a complaint against the accused and one of his friends, they were arrested, put in detention, and their statements were written down, but they denied committing the crime.

The statement affirmed, "The investigation continues against them to gather evidence that proves they committed the crime," noting that "the court decided to refer the papers to the Baghdad Criminal Investigation Unit... to make more efforts to collect evidence against the accused."