Summary: 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.
