Asia

The High Court of Justice on Wednesday instructed the state to review its stance regarding the inclusion of a woman in a commission investigating the Israel Defense Forces raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla in May, and issued a deadline of several hours to explain why there are no women sitting on the panel.

Dozens of Palestinian women and children were rendered homeless after the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) demolished for the third consecutive time all tents set up in Al-Araqib village of the Negev region in place of their houses which were knocked down earlier.

Iraqi Kurdistan: As the 13th convention of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Iraq draws nearer, Fazil Mirani, head of the political bureau of the party said that his party is not supportive of the quota system, meaning to predetermine certain amount of seats, for women.

“We are not with quota. We support women to be elected leaders of the party by men and women's votes,” said Mirani.

Facing arrest, her lawyer, Mohammad Mostafaei, fled to Norway via Turkey, where he was briefly detained. His wife and two relatives were held hostage in Tehran's Evin prison. They have since been released on bail. Non-government organisations campaigned forcefully on their behalf. However, few Muslim or non-Muslim leaders have spoken out against the criminalisation of adultery and its punishment by stoning.

Counting is not yet complete in the Solomon Islands election, but there is one result that is already certain - no women will be represented in the national parliament this time around.

Twenty five women contested the election, but not one has been successful. It is a disappointing result for organsations who have been working so hard to get women into parliament.

The preparation of Turkmenistan's periodic report under the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was reviewed at a two-day workshop in Ashgabat during 5-6 August 2010.

UNIFEM and its partner organization, the Women's Information Center, have organized a series of meetings in cooperation with local authorities and government bodies in Georgia, to facilitate the delivery of effective assistance to internally displaced and conflict-affected women and their families.

The female Palestinian prisoners of Al-Damon prison have called on the International Red Cross to put pressure on the Israeli authorities to close the "the worst jail ever," as they "experience tragic conditions in Al-Damon."

A lifetime of frustration in Burmese politics has not wearied Cho Cho Kyaw Nyein. Her years as a political prisoner have not blunted her sense of humour.

"Some people call us the 'three princesses of Burma', but to the government, we are the three witches," she laughs as, free now, she walks through the gardens of her once stately, now crumbling colonial home on a hilltop in the Burmese capital.

An Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning says Tehran is trying to confuse the media so it can execute her in secret.

Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani said in a Guardian article published Saturday Iranian authorities are lying about charges against her and that she did not kill her husband.