Women’s rights

Speaker of the National People's Assembly, Dr. Khalida Boufedech, is pictured in this undated image.

Meet Khalida Boufedech, the first woman to lead Algeria’s parliament

Khalida Boufedech became Algeria’s first woman parliament speaker and the highest-ranking woman to hold constitutional office in the country’s history.

An activist takes part in a demonstration against sexual harassment, rape and domestic violence in the Lebanese capital Beirut on December 7, 2019. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

Lebanon arrests man after video of public assault on wife goes viral

The man seen violently beating a woman at a restaurant has been arrested, but the incident has reignited debate over domestic violence amid warnings that such abuse can increase during periods of war.

MURAT KOCABAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

How ‘dog mom’ vacuum cleaner ad sparked culture war in Turkey

A Mother’s Day advertisement featuring a “dog mom” triggered a backlash from conservative media, government officials and regulators, turning a soft consumer campaign into a flashpoint over motherhood, declining birth rates, stray dogs and even antisemitism.

Kurdish people waving Kurdistan flags gather to celebrate Nowruz on the hill of Urkesh in the countryside of Amuda in northeastern Syria on March 18, 2026. Nowruz, meaning "new day," is an ancient festival that marks the start of spring and the new year on the vernal equinox, which usually falls on March 20 or 21. It is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide and has been observed for over 3,000 years across regions including the Middle East, Central Asia, the Caucasus and parts of Eastern Euro

Analysis

Is Syria’s Sharaa poised to outdo Turkey in formalizing gains for Kurds?

Damascus is making limited but tangible progress in its engagement with Syrian Kurds, even as Ankara seeks to shape the terms of any settlement.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

Iran formally allows women to drive motorcycles: What to know

Iranian instructor Maryam Ghelich stands with student Narghes as they look at Elham (3rd R), Leila and Mona, posing on their motorbikes before their lesson at a training center in northern Tehran on Dec. 7, 2025.

Culture

Lebanon’s first lady Nehmat Aoun takes center stage during Pope's visit

Adri Salido/Getty Images

Lebanon’s citizenship offer for FIFA head sparks debate over equal rights

CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images

Iran judicial chief orders crackdown on women defying hijab law: What to know

A couple sits facing the skyline of Tehran from Bam-e Tehran in Tehran, Iran on October 24, 2025. (Photo by Bahram / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by BAHRAM/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Protesters take part in a demonstration in support of We Will Stop Femicide outside the courthouse in Istanbul on Sept. 13, 2023.

Outrage sweeps Turkey over double femicide as Erdogan pledges stricter measures

Activists are highlighting the government's failure to enforce existing laws to protect women.

Two young Iranian girls, not wearing the mandatory hijab, visit Bame Tehran on Sept. 9, 2023.

Iran hijab laws back in spotlight as police shooting leaves woman paralyzed

In a case reminiscent of Mahsa Amini's, the mother of two struggles against permanent paralysis amid a state-imposed media blackout and pressure on her family to remain silent.

A woman walks holding a placard as activists demonstrate against female child marriages, in Tahrir Square in central Baghdad on July 28, 2024, amid parliamentary discussion over a proposed amendment to the Iraqi Personal Status Law. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP) (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqis protest proposed 'anti-women' amendment to personal status law

Temporarily prevented from being read in parliament, an amendment to the country’s personal status law is seen as the “latest salvo” in a lengthy battle.

Two Iranian women are walking in the street of Tehran with optional covering.

Women activists face 'severe sentences' in Iran, as new president vows easing of restrictions

A woman labor activist was sentenced to death in Iran for allegedly belonging to an outlawed Kurdish group, as authorities continue their crackdown against any type of dissent.

Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani (C) kisses the Taliban flag as he reviews the newly recruited Afghan security personnel during their graduation ceremony at the police academy in Kabul on October 5, 2023. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)

What's behind Taliban's decision to attend UN conference in Qatar?

The attendance in and of itself signals progress and the possibility that the international community might find better ways to deal with the de facto rulers in Kabul.

ABBAS MOMANI/AFP via Getty Images

How EU-West Bank police mission hopes to advance two-state solution

Newly appointed EUPOL COPPS chief Karin Limdal is tasked with helping Palestinian law enforcement institutions reform to facilitate the implementation of the two-state solution and Palestinian statehood.

Rumy al-Qahtani, a 27-year-old Saudi model and social media influencer, will take part in the global beauty pageant, which takes place in Mexico in September.

Culture

Saudi Arabia to make debut at Miss Universe pageant

The move is a historic first for Saudi Arabia, where women have long faced restrictions under conservative Islamic laws.

Merav Michaeli (C), leader of Israel's Labour party and member of Knesset (parliament), speaks on the phone during a Knesset session in a red costume as a form of protest alluding to "The Handmaid's Tale" book and television series, in Jerusalem on March 15, 2023. (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP) (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel's Labor Party chief: Netanyahu’s policies 'charade,' Gaza solution requires PA

In an exclusive interview, Israeli Labor leader Merav Michaeli squarely blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for emboldening far-right politicians and damaging relations with the United States.

First Lady Michal Herzog at a consolation visit by the Idan family, Oct. 25 Kibbutz Mishmar Haemek.

Israel’s first lady speaks out about 'unbearable' plight of women hostages in Gaza

Michal Herzog, Israel's first lady, spoke to Al-Monitor about her mission to make the world recognize the sexual violence perpetrated against Israeli women on and since Oct. 7.

Sara Massoumi in an undated photo

Iranian journalist Sara Massoumi sentenced to prison over tweet: lawyer

Sara Massoumi criticized the Islamic Republic over the death of teenage girl Armita Geravand, who some allege was beaten for not wearing the hijab.

Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Facebook, speaks during a session at the Congress centre on the second day of the World Economic Forum, on January 18, 2017.

‘Silence is complicity:’ Sheryl Sandberg speaks out on allegations of Hamas sexual violence

At the UN headquarters in New York, Israel’s envoy to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, slammed the organization UN Women for its reluctance to acknowledge the sexual crimes perpetrated by Hamas against Israeli women on Oct. 7.

Narges Mohammadi has not seen her children for eight years

Iran's jailed women's activist Narges Mohammadi wins Nobel peace prize

Agence France-Presse