The proposed paper challenges previous research on female genital cutting (FGC) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) but also more broadly, by approaching it intersectionally with other forms of violence against women. Previous research has focussed on the concept of ‘honour crimes’ and often mentions FGC rather descriptively without adequately elucidating how it fits in within the broader context of violence that Iraqi Kurdish women face. My paper attempts to advance the analysis further and examines the underlying factors that contribute to families deciding to cut their daughters. As the Kurds in Iraq have a history of war, political turmoil and ethnic oppression, I employ the feminist concept of “continuum of violence” (Cockburn, 2004) to explain FGC and wider gender-based violence as interconnected to wider forms of violence linked to the specific history of the KRI. One specific focus will be the tension between the roles that society (i.e. family, friends), governing institutions and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have in both upholding prevailing gender norms and relations and in contributing to the steadily increasing rates of violence against women in the KRI. The paper will argue that, despite the political rhetoric of protecting women’s rights, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) protects ‘the family’ through official and unofficial laws. Furthermore, the potential scope of work for women’s NGOs is severely restricted due to counterproductive legislation and rigid social norms enforced by both the KRG and broader society. This paper grows out of my broader year-long qualitative research (2014-2015), conducted at a crucial time when the KRI was facing a severe economic recession caused by political discord with the central government in Baghdad over oil sales and the security threat of the Islamic State (IS) terror organisation. My material consists of informal interviews and participant observation with women, including housewives in rural areas and urban centres, professional women working in NGOs and women’s rights activists belonging to various social classes, in addition to a textual analysis of relevant legal documents and media coverage.