Explained: How the killing of a 15-year-old Iraqi girl by US troops exposes the Western media’s double standards

“What about all the people killed by American police? Did all these deaths get investigated?” asked Ebrahim Raisi, the Iran president, at a news conference held in New York on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the world’s leaders at the United Nations General Assembly.

His defiant stance came as he was questioned over the custodial death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was held by the country’s morality police and the subsequent protests in the country, which have seen women burning their headscarves and chopping their hair off in public.

While speaking to the media, he lamented what he said were “double standards” in the West regarding human rights. Amid all the tension, social media users highlighted the death of a 15-year-old girl in Iraq, who was allegedly killed by American troops.

We take a closer look at what happened to this teen in Iraq — and the lack of media coverage around it.

The death of Zainab Essam Majed al-Khazali

On 20 September, 15-year-old Iraqi Zainab Essam Majed al-Khazali was killed by US gunfire while they were conducting military drills on Victoria Base, near Baghdad International Airport.

The incident took place near the Abu Ghraib prison, which has earned infamy for being the spot where members of the United States Army and the Central Intelligence Agency committed a series of human rights violations and war crimes against detainees during the Iraq occupation of 2004.

The Iraqi Security Media Cell announced that they have launched an investigation into the murder, which was described as a “random shooting”.

قيادة عمليات بغداد تفتح تحقيقا في حادثة وفاة إحدى الفتيات المرحومة ( زينب عصام ماجد ) منذ يوم وقوعه في قضاء ابو غريب غربي العاصمة والتي أصيبت بإطلاق نار عشوائي…

— خلية الإعلام الأمني