A 20-year-old girl- who converted to Christianity has been murdered after releasing a TikTok video.

Iman Sami was killed on 7th March in Northern Iraq, after a suspected retaliation with her family following a TikTok video she posted where she was singing Christian spiritual songs. 

Iman was a daughter of a Muslim cleric. 

International Christian Concern (ICC)'s President Jeff King shared his concern, he said: "For someone born as a Muslim to be open about exploring Christianity is a tremendous act of bravery, as most Muslim Background Believers (MBBs) in the region face intense pressure from both their families and communities. 

"Maria's TikTok post should not have ended with her death. 

"Iraq is just emerging from a very difficult time when Christians experienced a horrific genocide. 

"It is an important step toward healing for Iraq to pursue an investigation of due process into issues related to freedom of speech and religion."   

The Christian community in Iraq continues to suffer severe consequences of the ISIS genocide, and Muslim Background Believers are specifically at a high risk of targeted violence because of their conversion to Christianity. 

The persecution faced by Iraq's Christian community has forced most to flee the country. 

Christian news site Ankawa Today published on Facebook: "Iman Sami, known as Maria, was found by the police last night. 

"She suffered in her life because of her early marriage, where she drowned in marriage at the age of only 12 years. 

"After separation from her husband, she lived alone. 

"She was an activist in the field of women's rights and a brave woman. 

"She has videos on the TikTok app that reached hundreds of thousands of views. Her brother and uncle killed her yesterday!"