Women's rights

Meet the lionesses of Iran leading the fight for freedom

They tried to silence them, but these women roar louder than ever

A woman wearing a Lion and Sun Iranian flag (used before the 1980 Islamic Revolution) holds a sign during a protest in solidarity with the anti-government protesters of Iran on February 14, 2026.
(ILLUSTRATIVE) A displaced Yemeni girl stands outside her shelter inside a displaced persons camp in Marib, Yemen, October 28, 2024.

Young Yemeni woman's suicide prompts calls for new legislation on women’s rights

A HOLOCAUST survivor lights a torch during a ceremony held at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem, as Israel marks annual Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Women of the Wall call on Katz to include women in national Remembrance Day ceremony

Activists protest against a bill that would give more authorities to the rabbinical courts outside the Rabbinical Court of Tel Aviv, December 11, 2024.

Law widening religious courts’ role in civil disputes sparks debate over choice, rights - analysis


Afghan women take protests online as Taliban crush dissent

Afghan women have pushed back, taking to the streets to oppose the Taliban, and moving their protests indoors and online amid arrests and violent crackdowns.

 Protesters take part in a march and rally in support of Afghan women's rights in London, Britain, November 27, 2022.

Over 1 million women went missing in India from 2019 to 2021 - report

Causes cited in regard to the tremendous number of missing women were trafficking for forced marriage, domestic work, sexual exploitation, and child labor.

 People perform yoga in front of Taj Hotel, during International Yoga Day in Mumbai, India, June 21, 2023.

15 years of regional cooperation: The Union for the Mediterranean's common commitment - opinion

The UfM organization needs continued commitment from its members to achieve its goal of creating a socially, economically, and ecologically resilient Mediterranean region.

 EU FOREIGN POLICY chief Josep Borrell gestures (front, center) during a group photo at the 7th Regional Forum of the Union for the Mediterranean in Barcelona, last November.

What do MENA Muslims think about the role of women in society? – study

The researchers surveyed respondents from Algeria, Egypt, Pakistan, Tunisia, Turkey, and the Palestinian Territories on their perception of women's chastity and marital patriarchy.

Women shop at a street in Tehran, Iran, November 29, 2021.

Knesset bill to dismantle authority responsible for gender equality passes preliminary reading

The bill was introduced by MK Limor Son Har-Melech (Otzma Yehudit), who is confident that the bill "will allow equal opportunities for all women in Israel."

 Women hold signs as they protest for women equality, in Tel Aviv on August 23, 2022.

UN World Population Day highlights women's rights in Israel

Around the globe, women continue to face barriers. In Israel, analysts express concern about the status of women under the right-wing government.

 Women from the Ambash cult speak outside the election committee meeting where political parties running for a spot in the upcoming Israeli elections, arrive to present the party list for the September 2019 elections, at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on August 1, 2019.

Jewish groups fight abortion bans, citing religious liberty

Asserting that such restrictions violate their religious beliefs, these groups are at the forefront of a legal strategy seeking to protect reproductive rights through the lens of religious freedom.

 Abortion rights protesters participate in nationwide demonstrations following the leaked Supreme Court opinion suggesting the possibility of overturning the Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision, in Atlanta, Georgia, US,  May 14, 2022

Taliban administration orders beauty salons in Afghanistan to close

Foreign governments and UN officials have condemned growing restrictions on women since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

 A woman wearing a niqab enters a beauty salon where the ads of women have been defaced by a shopkeeper in Kabul, Afghanistan October 6, 2021.

MK Haskel taken off Knesset podium for holding her daughter while speaking

She wanted to present her proposed bill for a first reading in the Knesset, but the Knesset's legal advisor asked her not to speak and to descend the podium.

 MK Sharren Haskel at a plenum session at the assembly hall of the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on December 18, 2022.

'Gender Apartheid' is virtue signaling: Expert criticizes UN on Afghan women’s rights

A New York-based lawyer questions the UN's strategy to declare gender apartheid a crime, arguing that existing laws should be enforced instead.

 An Afghan woman and a girl walk in a street in Kabul, Afghanistan, November 9, 2022.