Stories
Women in Hebron blow the whistle on widespread domestic violence
Saturday, April 10, 2021
According to polled women in Hebron, gender-based violence is one of the most prevalent forms of violence in their communities. These violations are rarely reported to the authorities, rendering accountability elusive. To end this vicious circle, a group of women is learning how to detect, document and report early signs of conflict-related and domestic violence in their neighbourhoods.
Virtual ceremony held to launch SHAML project
Thursday, April 8, 2021
UN Women Palestine, in partnership with the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the Ministry of Social Development, held a virtual ceremony today, Wednesday 7 April 2021, to launch SHAML project, aimed at “Enhancing the Protection and Reintegration of Furthest Left Behind Groups of Women and Girls Victims and Survivors of Violence in Palestine”.
‘Because of my psoriasis, I have suffered so many forms of violence’
Thursday, March 18, 2021
At the age of nine, Asmaa Al Attar was diagnosed with psoriasis. She got married when she was 20. Seven years later, she asked for divorce because of her husband’s abuse. Now, at 27 and unemployed, Asmaa lives with her two children in Rafah City in the Gaza Strip.
Promoting gender-sensitive reporting in the Palestinian media
Sunday, March 14, 2021
Media plays a vital role in shaping perceptions of violence against women and girls and its impact. As part of the HAYA Joint Programme, journalists and media professionals are receiving training on ethical and non-discriminatory reporting on gender justice and violence against women.
“If beaten women remain silent, they would endure more violence.”
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
Mona Al-Najmi, 34, is divorced and lives with her three children in the Maghazi Refugee Camp in central Gaza. The camp area is densely populated and lacks adequate infrastructure while its inhabitants face poverty and high unemployment rates.
Ramallah centre steps up as front-line refuge for women amid COVID crisis
Monday, March 8, 2021
A One-Stop Centre in Ramallah has been pressed into service as medium-term safe accommoda-tion, a quarantine centre, and more, to ensure women have somewhere to escape violence at home throughout the pandemic and lockdown.
Providing safe spaces for survivors of violence, even during COVID-19
Monday, March 8, 2021
Gender-based violence (GBV) rooms provide safe and private spaces for survivors of violence seeking medical, psychological, and social support in the West Bank and Gaza. Through the HAYA Joint Programme, UNFPA is working with the Ministry of Health in Palestine to ensure these safe spaces and services are available to everyone in need.
Thursday, February 4, 2021
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) signed an agreement to better support the State of Palestine to accelerate progress on gender equality and women’s empowerment in line with the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Sunday, January 10, 2021
UN Women Palestine announced the first cohort of Gender Innovation Agora (GIA) a consultative forum and platform for regular dialogue and advocacy around gender with youth in Palestine. 31 young leaders from Palestine were selected for their leadership and demonstrated contribution to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
Preventing violence through education in the West Bank
Monday, December 7, 2020
A teacher works with students in a school in Ramallah, West Bank before the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: HAYA Joint Programme/Samar Hazboun Violence inflicts harm on women, girls, men, and boys of all ages throughout the world. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, violence against women and girls has intensified and violence against school children in and outside the home is no exception. According to a survey by Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, in the West Bank and Gaza Strip,...
Helping survivors of violence seek justice through forensic science in the West Bank
Monday, December 7, 2020
A vital pillar in the justice and security system, the sole forensic science laboratory in the West Bank seeks justice for survivors of violence. UNODC through the HAYA Joint Programme, is training laboratory technicians to help increase the likelihood of identifying perpetrators of violence and holding them accountable.
Press release: Palestine moves forward in promoting women’s participation in peace and security
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Under the auspices of H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Mohammad Shtayyeh and to mark the 20th anniversary of United Nation Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR1325) on Women, Peace and Security, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, in partnership with UN Women, presented Palestine’s second National Action Plan (NAP) to implement UNSCR1325 and further consolidate women’s participation in decision-making and peacebuilding.
Thursday, September 10, 2020
Associate Professor, lecturer, Gender specialist and former director of the Women's Studies Institute at Birzeit University in Palestine, Islah Jad, introduced and discussed her book “Palestinian Women’s Activism” at an online book discussion hosted by UN Women and CARE Palestine West Bank/Gaza (WBG).
In Palestine one couple shows the benefit of sharing the care at home
Thursday, September 3, 2020
Ilham Edaes, a 28-year-old health worker in the West Bank, Palestine has been back to work, every day, since May, serving the hardest-to-reach communities through a mobile clinic that offers breast cancer screening. Edaes has a five-year-old son, Majd, who is growing up watching his parents share childcare and domestic chores – an unusual occurrence in the region, where domestic and unpaid care work is largely seen as women’s work.
COVID-19 quarantine poses added challenges for women with cancer in Gaza
Wednesday, September 2, 2020
Due to shortages in COVID-19 testing kits, coupled with an already paralyzed health sector, the authorities in Gaza have designated quarantine centres for those returning from abroad to avoid a major outbreak in one of the world’s most densely populated areas. The situation is particularly difficult for cancer patients, like Marwa, returning from treatment in Israel and in need of specialized medical help, as their weakened immune systems leave them at higher risk of contracting COVID-19.
Wednesday, August 19, 2020
Ramallah. UN Women Palestine and CARE International partnered with Nisaa FM to broadcast a radio show discussing the role of women healthcare workers in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tuesday, July 21, 2020
On 9 July 2020, UN Women and the General Union of Palestinian Women held a virtual ‘Open Day’ on Women, Peace and Security in Palestine. The event, held for the fifth time in ten years, provided a platform for Palestinian women civil society leaders, senior government and UN officials to discuss the challenges in implementing the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325) on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) in Palestine twenty years after its adoption. The event was generously funded by the Government of Norway through the programme ‘Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in Palestine.’
In Gaza, helping mothers reunite with children separated by the COVID-19 lockdown
Monday, July 13, 2020
The COVID-19 lockdown in Palestine left many women with no legal backing to secure child visitation and custody rights. Former partners took advantage of the legal paralysis to prevent mothers from seeing their children or to stop sending alimony. A joint programme by UN Women, UNDP and UNICEF has trained lawyers and provided free legal aid for 371 Palestinian women.
New report from UN Women brings forth voices of Palestinian women under COVID-19 lockdown
Tuesday, June 9, 2020
Early into the COVID-19 crisis, UN Women, in partnership with Arab World for Research and Development, conducted in-depth interviews with Palestinian women in the West Bank and Gaza for a new study that sheds new light on the situation and needs of Palestinian women and girls.
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
Unless gender is integrated into national and institutional efforts to combat COVID-19 in Palestine, the pandemic’s socio-economic impact would aggravate gender inequalities and women’s vulnerabilities, according to a new gender analysis by UN Women.