Israeli authorities used such measures to target activists, including human rights defenders, who criticized Israel’s continuing occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. WOMEN’S RIGHTSDozens of women human rights defenders were targeted for advocating for women’s rights or protesting against violence against women or sexual harassment, particularly in Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia. However, 2018, like 2017, saw limited positive developments at a legislative and institutional level with respect to women’s rights and violence against women. In Syria, government forces continued sieges that deprived hundreds of thousands of access to medical care, other basic goods and services and humanitarian assistance. Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, the countries hosting most of the refugees, continued to block the entry of new refugees.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 26, 2019 09:00 UTC