For lasting peace in Yemen, bring women to the table
For a decade now, Yemen has held the last position in the Gender Gap Index. This index shows that Yemen has the widest gap in gender equality among other countries across the continent. This poor performance is reflected in our high rates of maternal mortality and lack of educational opportunities for women, but this underdevelopment has been exacerbated by a lack of women political participation. In this moment of unrest in my country, we are at a crossroads. We must include women in the peace talks or risk perpetuating the poverty, inequality, and violence that have caused havoc in our country for years.
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Russia and Syria use Palmyra as a stage for political theater
Since its capture by ISIS in May of 2015, Palmyra has become a kind of archaeological fetish for the West. Artists and scholars who made no remark on endless images of Syrian corpses were moved by the sight of pulverized Roman columns to produce numerous artistic rescue fantasies, including a 3D-printed replica and a traveling robot-built reproduction of Palmyra’s Arch of Triumph. For many, the spectacle of its destruction could have emerged from the imaginary of the War on Terror and its mythic clash of civilizations.
Since Russian and Syrian forces recaptured Palmyra on March 27, Putin has moved to upcycle the remains of the ancient city into a stage for his own political theater.
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German sex education website for refugees draws frowns
Refugees in Germany are being taught how to have sexual relations properly, in the latest odd attempt to help those that have arrived on the shores of Europe.
A $136,000 sexual education website created by German's Federal Centre for Health Education has just gone live, detailing explicit information designed to help migrants understand how to perform both basic and advanced sexual acts.
The move, one suspects, stems from several sexual assault incidents attributed to the new arrivals on New Year's Eve.
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