General Women, Peace and Security

The head of the U.N. agency that fights for gender equality and the empowerment of women said Wednesday that women and children have borne the brunt of the conflict in South Sudan, and called for women to play a leading role at peace talks under way in Addis Ababa.

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A new women's centre in a refugee camp in Liberia has been set up and is ready to deal with different women's issues. DRC has identified different challenges faced by females – and they will be addressed in the new centre.

Violence Against Women and Girls is rife in the Pacific and various programs are being developed to counter this.`26 participants from Fiji, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Tonga shared their ideas and experiences as the first day of their week long Stage 4 Pacific Male Advocacy Training of Trainers kicked off in Nadi yesterday.

For those of you who have blocked out memory of the long battle to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act that waged throughout 2012 and into 2013, one of the objections that obstructionist Republicans had was the fact that the act would allow Native American tribes to prosecute non-tribal members for domestic violence and rape.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi authorities are detaining thousands of women illegally and subjecting many to torture and ill-treatment, including the threat of sexual abuse, Human Rights Watch said in a report published on Thursday.

(WNN) Los Angeles, California, UNITED STATES, AMERICAS: Despite the election of new President Hassan Rowhani in the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI), women continue to face new challenges in exercising their civil rights. For women this means a great challenge to reach equality as well as accessing educational and workforce resources.

Longstanding cultural norms make life hard for many women in Addis Ababa, including deep-seated chauvinism that is apparent in many street corners.

Yet the authorities make little allowance for verbal intimidation, and it often pays to maintain a dignified silence rather than tackle the perpetrators. Tibebeselassie Tigabu and Mihret Aschalew investigate this depressingly familiar problem.

GENEVA (AP) — The leader of Syria's Western-backed opposition said Thursday he will give his negotiating team the authority it needs in any talks with President Bashar Assad's government.

If regular armies are generally a man's world, guerrillas and insurgent forces are just the contrary. There women have always had a central role.

The young women and girls from Africa have spoken. Their message was delivered in a statement during the just ended African Union (A.U) Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia which took place from 20 to 31 January. More than 30 African heads of state gathered on Thursday for the opening session of 22nd A.U Heads of State meeting under the theme “agriculture and food security“.