Mosaic: World News From The Middle East

The United Nations Relief & Works Agency in Palestine has scrapped plans for a marathon due to be run in the Gaza Strip after ruling faction Hamas declared women were not allowed to participate. Proceeds from the annual race would have been allocated to fund programs for children's recreation, and the event itself was intended to help shed light on the dire conditions in the Strip. However, Gaza's government declared that having women runners take part would violate the norms and culture of Palestinian society. This caused the UNRWA to cancel the marathon altogether, saying the United Nations is committed to upholding the values of equality.

According to Save the Children, two million Syrian children are facing malnutrition and disease, while tens of thousands are living in squalid conditions in refugee camps. In the report titled "Childhood Under Fire," the charity warns of an emerging catastrophe, and has urged the United Nations to take greater responsibility. IBA reports.

UN investigators examining 20 alleged massacres in Syria say regime forces carried out six of the eight confirmed atrocities. Meanwhile, al-Nusra Front is ?imposing harsh, Taliban-style regulations? in areas under its control, mostly in Deir Ez-Zour and its surroundings. New TV reports on these developments.

Iraqis in the city of Um Qasr sabotaged border markers along their country's border with Kuwait after claiming the frontier had been moved during UN-supervised repairs to the border demarcation. In response, Kuwait sent a memorandum to the United Nations expressing discontent over the attack. Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister, Khaled al-Jarallah, said that the sabotage is inconsistent with the "brotherly relations" that exist between the two countries. On TV reports.

The Israeli Army has launched an operation to plant fast-growing non-native eucalyptus trees along Gaza's border with Israel. The woodland is apparently intended to act as a screen against terrorist sniper fire, while also "blocking out undesirable views." IBA reports.

After the US invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban regime, and a new government was installed, Afghan women have been able to enter job sectors that were previously exclusive to men. Some were also able to go to school, and participate in sports. However, conflict, poverty, and illiteracy remain the key factors preventing women from being fully integrated in Afghan society. For International Women's Day, Al Jazeera reports on the situation of Afghan women.

The Free Syrian Army's Chief of Staff, Brigadier General Salim Idris, called on European governments to give the opposition the arms it needs to defeat President Bashar al-Assad. These statements follows pledges from the US and Britain to provide rebels with "non-lethal" aid. On Tv reports.

French forces say fighting in Mali has claimed the lives of two al-Qaeda leaders in recent days, although only one of the deaths has been confirmed. Fighting also reportedly claimed the life of one French soldier and 15 Islamist gunmen. French and Chadian troops are continuing their mission to dismantle the al-Qaeda network in Mali, and hope to allow UN peacekeeping to enter the country soon. OnTV reports.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak opened the AIPAC conference by outlining Iran's nuclear threat, specifying it could not be dealt with using diplomacy alone. While AIPAC, America's largest pro-Israel lobby met in Washington DC, Yukiya Amano, head of the IAEA, told a closed door session of the atomic agency that he cannot guarantee Iran's nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, saying additional military sites need inspection. John Kerry, US Secretary of State, also weighed in on Iran's nuclear program on his trip to Riyadh. IBA reports.

The International diplomatic group of countries known as 'Friends of Syria' met in Rome to discuss the situation in the country. However, Russia criticized the decisions that emerged from this meeting, and found that it is encouraging extremists to seize power by force. Defected Brigadier General Manaf Tlass hopes that a Russian-American agreement would bring an end to the crisis. New TV reports.

Delwar Hossein Sayeedi, leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, Bangladesh's largest Islamist opposition party, was sentenced to death after being convicted of committing war crimes including mass killing and rape. His supporters say the case against him was politically motivated, but the government denies these allegations. BBC Arabic reports.

Tunisia's ruling coalition gives up the interior, foreign, defense, and justice ministries to independent figures, in an attempt to diffuse the crisis that erupted following the assassination of opposition leader Chokri Belaid. This comes after a new prime minister was appointed by President Moncef al-Marzouki and assigned with forming a new technocratic government. BBC Arabic reports.

The death of a 30-year-old Palestinian Arafat Jaradat in an Israeli jail last Saturday, which has led to allegations he was tortured, has placed the case of Palestinian prisoners under the spotlight. Dozens of detainees remain on hunger strike in protest against their indefinite imprisonment, and popular outrage continues to escalate in the Palestinian territories.

Human Rights Watch strongly criticized a new protest law being considered by the Shura Council, Egypt's temporary legislative body. It would ban protesters from holding demonstrations near government buildings and allow the police to disperse protests with force. In aletter to the president, the organization described the new law as a setback to human rights. BBC Arabic reports.

Protesters in the coastal city of Port Said held anti-government demonstrations titled "Friday of Apology" and chanted slogans against the Muslim Brotherhood. This is in response to recent clashes with the police that left over 40 people dead. Many residents of the city have participating in a general strike for the past week and some have threatened to disrupt the country's upcoming elections. BBC Arabic reports.