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Monday, 5th May 2014 Times York New The

Women Burn for Their Rights
As the turmoil in the Middle
East ceases to rest, so do the re-
strictions on womens rights.
A report from Al-Jazeera has confrmed
that an 18-year-old Palestinian woman,
identifed as only Miss Yashere, has died
in hospital due to setting herself on fre.
As passers by continued to look
on in horror, it took an estimated
5-7 minutes before any authorities or
medical personnel were contacted.
Sufering with 85% of burns to her body, a
representative from the Gaza City Hospi-
tal released a statement to media, saying:
Miss Yashere sufered a heart at-
tack, while being given treatment
to her wounds. However, it was un-
likely she would have survived, con-
sidering the severity of her burns.
Miss Yashere set herself on fre
in a radical attempt to draw at-
tention to the declining rights
of women under Hamas rule.
Having been sold of as a child bride at
the age of 13, Miss Yashere ran of to join
an underground womens refuge group.
Te Palenstian feminist league
protests for the rights of wom-
en ruled under Hamas law, and was
Miss Yasheres only place of peace.
A spokeswoman from the group
has given her deepest sympathies to
Miss Yasheres family and friends.
Statistics have shown that 46 wom-
en die every six months, under the
grueling torment they endure by
their husbands and male counter
parts determined by Hamas rulings.
As women are only seen as sec-
ond class citizens, human rights ac-
tivists are pushing for a change
against this unsettling inequality.
According to human rights ob-
servers, in the last few years, an in-
creasingly high number of harsh
religious courts have made it dif-
cult for Palestinian women in Gaza.
Te types of abuse that have been
reported include; physical and sexual
assaults, and public stonings, with hon-
our killings becoming more prevalent.
By Katherine Cannon
2.5 Million Left Without a Home
Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Me-
decins sans Frontieres (MSF) have re-
leased a joint report that clearly verifes
the heightened rate of abuse and mistreat-
ment of people in turmoil-stricken Libya.
Tis continues to be an endur-
ing issue within the country, with lit-
tle having changed since the passing
of the Gadaf regime in late 2011.
Te report raises alarm over the
mistreatment of traders and residents of
the citys centre, with the mention of in-
nocent citizens receiving beatings from
ofcials if they are to step out of line.
According to HRW and MSF re-
port, the armed opposition and gov-
ernment in Syria have committed
several war crimes which are seen to
cross the nations moral boundaries.
Te report mentions at least thirty
acts of unjust abuse and in-
cludes a list suspects, but is not
releasing names at this stage.
A representative from Human
Rights Watch says Our core com-
mitment is to investigate the abuse
whilst ensuring the respect and dig-
nity of each and every person.
We have an extensive case of evi-
dence in terms of beatings, execu-
tions, forced disappearance, arbitrary
detentions, torture and sexual vio-
lence across the Middle East she says.
HRW state in the report that ex-
ecutions should be reserved for the
worst criminal cases, but express their
belief in reciprocation: those who
kill deserve to be killed, and so forth
with other acts of abuse and violence.
Te report made mention to the
mistreatment of refugees and those
depleted by circumstance, with MSF
raising the point of Syrias health sys-
tem facing a collapse and the avail-
ability of aid falling drastically short.
Despite the operation of make-
shif hospitals and vaccination fa-
cilities, refugees are a group who
are failing to have their needs met.
A speaker from the Internation-
al Committee of the Red Cross has
made claims that their services are
at the brink of collapsing, with fund-
ing coming to a drastic holt. Fund-
ing for medical support and hous-
ing for refugees is at an all-time
low and the absence of refugees
on the national agenda is an issue
of humanitarian mistreatment
a Red Cross representative said.
It is further explained that
over 2.5 million people have
been forced from their homes in-
side Syria and out on the streets,
highlighting the mistreatment of
refugees as a whole. Tese is-
sues must be dealt with to ensure
the just treatment of all humans
and allow for a forward movement
as an efective society Human
Rights Watch claims.
Te report presents these is-
sues of abuse, mistreatment and in-
justice in an aim of highlighting the
excluded groups in Middle Eastern
society and the need for an overhaul
of the current political landscape.
Aneesh Nabhan and her three children have been cast out onto the streets
(Photo - New York Times Archives)
By Ruby Gallop
Contractors Taken Captive
Four foreign contractors of a beach
resort development in Lebanon
have been kidnapped, according
to reports surfacing from the BBC.
Te project managers were
working on a construction
site in the countrys south yes-
terday when they were tak-
en by unknown individuals.
Te victims are all male,
and are of French, Brit-
ish, and German decent.
Salim Karam, a structural engi-
neer on the project, discovered the
men were missing when he arrived
early for a meeting about pro-
posed changes to the resort design.
Tey were meant to be in
the conference room on site
for most of the afernoon; I
knew something was wrong
when I arrived and no one was
there, Mr Karam told the BBC.
He tried to reach each of the
project managers by phone
but was immediately redirected
to their voicemails.
Karam spoke to oth-
er members of the project
about the mens whereabouts
before phoning the police.
Tere has been no word from
the Lebanese authorities on the
kidnapping other than an appeal
for any witnesses to come forward.
Te wife of the missing
British contractor, who wish-
es to remain anonymous, has
begged the kidnappers publi-
cally to release the men safely.
Please, my husband and the oth-
er men are good people, she said.
Tey havent done any-
thing wrong. Let them
come home to us safely.
No one as of yet has claimed
responsibility for the kidnapping.
Yesterdays incident has height-
ened the recent growing fears
that the situation in the Middle
East is spreading to the West.
By Rachel Ferrett