Stories
Two birds with one stone: UN Women helps vulnerable women find jobs in the battle against COVID-19
Friday, July 2, 2021
UN Women-supported project aims to reinforce women’s leadership and participation in emergency response, including COVID-19, and equitable recovery. It is part of a larger programme on “Advancing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda in Palestine.” Funded by Norway, this project aims at supporting the Palestinian institutions and civil society in implementing a National Action Plan (NAP) on UN Security Council Resolution 1325, and increasing women’s participation in emergency response and post-conflict recovery.
UN Women, UNESCO sign partnership agreement to promote gender equality in Palestinian media
Thursday, July 1, 2021
JERUSALEM – UNESCO and UN Women Palestine offices signed a partnership agreement on 1 July 2021 with the aim of enhancing the role of women and promoting gender-sensitive reporting in Palestinian media. The agreement, which will last until March 2022, encompasses various activities such as conducting a gender study of major media organizations and monitoring gender presence in five major outlets in Palestine.
From where I stand: Supporting refugee women amidst violence in Gaza
Friday, June 18, 2021
Mariam Shaqura, 46, is the Director of Women’s Affairs at the Red Crescent Society (RCS) in the Gaza Strip, where she has worked for 21 years. A mother of two girls, aged 13 and 8, Mrs. Shaqura talks about her experience during the recent escalation of violence on the Strip, and the damages caused to the Women’s Health Centre operated by RCS at the Jabalya Refugee Camp, one of the largest in Gaza.
OPINION: How Gaza’s war rubble removal can make way for gender equality by Heba Zayyan
Thursday, June 17, 2021
After every round of violence comes the refrain of not wishing to return to Gaza’s “business as usual”. Yet, when the dust settles and post-conflict flurry of interest dissipates, Gazans always return to their harsh status quo: a stifling blockade, underdevelopment and unemployment, to name but a few. Each of these chronic problems are lived by women, men, girls and boys differently.
Thursday, May 20, 2021
Jafra Nasser, 28, lives with her daughter Leen and son Omar, three and two years old respectively, in the town of Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza. She has a degree in nursing and works at the Ministry of Health. Unable to find a job in the Strip, her husband, a doctor, left for Germany three years ago and has been receiving training and hospital experience, in the hope of finding a job and filing for family reunification soon. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, he has not been able to return to see his family.
In the words of Salwa Iskafi: “We are in constant fear of being forced out of our home”
Thursday, May 20, 2021
Salwa Iskafi, 62, has been living in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem since 1976. Along with other families who have been living in Sheikh Jarrah for decades, Salwa and her family are at risk of losing their home to Jewish settlers after an Israeli court ordered their eviction.
Monday, May 17, 2021
After living most of her life in Dubai, 43-year-old Natalie Abushahla moved to Gaza in 2003. She and her husband decided to build a life in their hometown where she has worked for many international organizations including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United States Agency for Cooperation and Development (USAID). Natalie has two daughters, aged six and ten years old, and a two-year-old son.
Wednesday, May 12, 2021
Statement by UN Women Palestine and UN Women Regional Office for the Arab States. UN Women joins the United Nations Secretary General and other UN entities in voicing grave concern at the continuing violence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, particularly the targeting of civilian populations and killing of innocent people, including women and children.
UN Women, UNFPA join forces to combat rising gender-based violence in Palestine
Monday, May 3, 2021
UN Women and UNFPA have received $3 Million from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (UN CERF) to primarily support women- and community-led organizations working to prevent and respond to gender-based violence in Palestine.
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.
'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.
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.
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.
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,...
A female inmate’s journey towards reintegration amidst COVID-19 in Palestine
Tuesday, November 24, 2020
The provision of mental health and reintegration support services for women in detention is critical to ensuring their rehabilitation. A joint programme by UN Women, UNDP and UNICEF in Palestine is supporting such interventions in a manner that empowers women and make them able to cope with new challenges -such as the COVID-19 crisis- in constructive and positive ways. In addition to receiving psychosocial support, female inmates like Nada are learning new crafts such as mosaic, embroidery...
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.