Gazan women face rise in abuse

Insharar al-Atar (second left) says she forgives her husband for his aggression because she knows what he is going through

He has beaten her so badly she has problems with her eyes, her teeth and her shoulder.

She says he grabs her by her long hair and drags her around before hitting her. He is also violent with her three children, aged five, three and nine months. Baby Ahmad lies asleep in her arms as we sit talking in a small room at the women’s clinic.

For full article, visit http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7968421.stm

Sahar (who wanted her family name omitted), aged 36, divorced her husband in February due to the physical and psychological abuse she endured leading up to and during the war. “He beat me severely and I was fainting from the stress,” said Sahar.

“He forced me to engage in sexual intercourse against my will.” Sahar brings her two-year-old daughter to the Palestinian Centre for Democracy and Conflict Resolution (PCDCR) to visit the daughter’s father.

For full article, visit http://www.imemc.org/article/59694