An Erbil court has sentenced a doctor to death for the murder of four members of his own family in a shocking crime that gripped the region earlier this year.
The verdict was delivered on Tuesday against Dr. Sirwan Mahmoud, who was convicted of fatally shooting his wife, her parents, and her sister on March 13 in Erbil’s Farmanbaran neighborhood. The killings followed a bitter family dispute.
Birzo Saeed, a consultant lawyer at the Erbil Appellate Court, confirmed the ruling to Rudaw. “Today, a judge issued a verdict in the case of Dr. Sirwan Mahmood, who was charged with murdering his wife and her family members,” Saeed said.
According to the court’s decision, Mahmoud received one death sentence and two life sentences. Saeed explained, “Dr. Sirwan received life imprisonment for murdering his wife, another life sentence for murdering her sister, and the death penalty for killing his mother-in-law and father-in-law and injuring a child.”
The attack occurred after Mahmoud’s wife had moved back to her parents’ home amid ongoing marital strife. A witness told Rudaw at the time, “His wife asked for a divorce and the doctor couldn’t stand it.”
