Asia-Pacific News
Iraqi Christian hit daughter for dating Muslim, court told
By DPA
May 14, 2008, 23:51 GMT

Wellington - An Assyrian Christian Iraqi refugee appeared in court in New Zealand after hitting his 20-year-old daughter for going out with a Muslim, a newspaper reported Thursday.

Ishak Ishak, 59, pleaded guilty to assaulting his daughter, and his lawyer told the court that going out with a Muslim would bring great shame on the family and the small Assyrian Christian community, the Dominion Post reported.

The judge told Ishak that he had come to New Zealand to maintain his religious beliefs without discrimination and that he had to comply with the country's laws.

Ishak, who apologized and said he would never hit his daughter again, was freed without penalty, providing he does not re-offend in the next nine months.