Trump Reinstates Global Gag Rule; Zimbabwe Widows Evicted from Land: Daily Brief
Trump reinstates global gag rule; Zimbabwe widows evicted from land; 1,500 people put on terror list in Egypt; Indonesian police carry out Islamist militants' anti-LGBT agenda; Russia seeks to decriminalize domestic violence; Ethnic Kachin Baptist leaders detained in Burma; HRW researcher expelled from DRC; and life sentence confirmed for Kyrgyz activist.
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Yesterday, United States President Donald Trump drew the ire of international activist groups and supporters, many of whom had just participated in the global Women's Marches, for reinstating a dangerous policy that threatens women's rights worldwide. Today, he signed executive orders advancing two controversial oil pipelines in the US that have been met with strong environmental push-back and large protests.
Life is returning to normal in eastern Mosul as the Iraqi government declares it "liberated." But the United Nations reported today that nearly 750,000 Iraqi civilians in the city remain at "extreme risk" as fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State (ISIS) fighters moves toward its western half. Civilians and children stuck in Mosul's battle areas have faced attacks, airstrikes, and detainment, and tens of thousands of civilians are displaced.
Today, Israel announced a large settlement expansion in the West Bank, with a proposed 2,500 new homes. The move comes roughly a week after a coalition of 70 countries, in an effort to promote peace in the region, urged Israel to refrain from building more settlements.
From earlier today: Two days after some 5 million people around the globe marched demanding respect for women’s rights, US President Donald Trump reinstated the “Global Gag Rule,” a policy prohibiting United States international aid to groups which in anyway engage with abortion – providing it, offering counseling, advocating for abortion law reform, or providing referrals – even with non-US funding. The move threatens women’s lives around the world.
In Zimbabwe, widows are routinely evicted from their homes and land, and their property is stolen by in-laws when their husbands die. The government should urgently take steps to protect widows from this practice, which has a devastating impact on widows.