Women's Rights

Iran Arrests Two Young Women for Dancing in Cemetery

Iranian police arrested two young women after publication of a video in which they danced in a Tehran cemetery without adhering to the country's strict dress code, local media reported Friday. "Not long ago, two people, in the cemetery of martyrs in Tehran, disregarding the sacred site, recorded a video clip with inappropriate clothing and ...

Women-Only Flight Lands in Iranian Holy City for First Time

An Iranian airline conducted a rare women-only flight on Sunday, landing for the first time in the holy city of Mashhad in the northeast, state media reported. The Aseman Airlines flight by Shahrzad Shams -- one of Iran's pioneering women pilots -- carried 110 passengers on board, according to the official IRNA news agency. Dubbed the "Iran ...

Hundreds in Damascus Protest for Democracy, Women's Rights

In Damascus's Ummayad Square, hundreds gathered Thursday, demanding a democratic state that includes women in public life, marking the first such demonstration since Islamist-led rebels toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad. Women and men, young and old, chanted slogans including "No to religious rule", "God is for religion ...

'Global Backlash against Women's Rights' Warns UN Chief

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Friday that a "backlash" against women's rights was threatening progress across the world. He called the situation facing women in Afghanistan "the most egregious example" with girls excluded from "much of the education system." He also singled out sexual violence against women in Sudan, ...

France to Be First Country to Enshrine Abortion in Its Constitution

France became the first country to explicitly enshrine abortion in its Constitution on Monday March 4, marking a clear step forward at a time when this right is under threat around the world. The French parliament on Monday voted to anchor the right to abortion in the constitution, making France the first country in the world to offer explicit ...

Iran Executes 'Child Bride' for Husband's Murder

Iran executed a woman on Wednesday, who had been found guilty of murdering her husband. She had entered into the marriage as a child, and despite international pleas for leniency, the execution proceeded, according to human rights organizations. Iran hanged a woman on Wednesday convicted of murdering her husband, whom she married while she was ...