Friday Links | August 9, 2013

Every summer thousands of underage Egyptian girls are sold in (temporary) marriage by their families to Arab Gulf men. It is said that some girls have married 60 times before they turn 18.

Slowly but surely Iraqi women are becoming increasingly visible and have more presence, especially in the fields of education and business, but sexual (verbal) abuse remains prevalent, especially in teacher-student and employer-employee situations.

22-year-old Muslim Sanjida Akter has been arrested in Bangladesh and charged with kidnapping after she eloped with her Hindu underage girlfriend, and married her in what would be the first same-sex marriage in the country where homosexuality is banned.

WeNews features an article on the rise in popularity of Muslim fashion bloggers, designers and photographers, or “hijabistas.”

Former Malawi president Muluzi has said that the Muslim women who were dancing last week at a rally held by current president Joyce Banda have brought disrepute to Islam.

Al Jazeera features a program on the effect of the male labor migration has on Tajikistan’s women and families.

When Iman Abdulrazzak was taking her bar exam in Boston, USA, she received a note from a bar exam proctor which asked her to remove her “headwear,” despite the fact that she had ensured that she was allowed to wear the hijab during the exam.

Acid attacks continue in Pakistan, and some data even suggest that the attacks are on the rise, despite harsher penalties.

According to French newspaper Le Monde, France is urged to consider a ban on headscarves in universities per the recommendations of the High Council of Integration.

After being featured in a BBC report, 10-year-old Pakistani Jeeni and her family are released from bonded labour.

CNN profiles the work of Somali women’s activist and c0-founder of Sister Somalia, Fartuun Adan.

Despite the fact that girls under the age of 17 are prohibited to be married in Gaza, it is estimated that in 2012 alone 35% of the marriages conducted in Gaza involved an underage girl; many of these marriages end up in divorce.

A bomb on a graveyard in eastern Afghanistan kills 14 women and children, who were spending their Eid-ul-Fitr picnicking at the graveside of a family member.

The remark that visibly pregnant women are shameful, has resulted in a political crisis for Turkish prime minister Erdogan.

A non-governmental organization in Libya uses religious texts for a nation-wide media campaign to seek awareness about domestic violence against women.

Anjum Rahman could become the first Muslim woman elected in local government in New Zealand.