As an Arab-American of Muslim heritage who has called repeatedly 4
#ceasefire
in
#Gaza
I appeal 4 protection of
#Jews
in Dagestan & the Caucasus who are currently victims of anti-Semitic violence. Their rights & dignity must be respected & protected
NOW
While hoping for good news about condition of
#SalmanRushdie
, let's flood Twitter w
#RushdiesWords
Type them, recite them, share them. Unstoppable
#WordsMorePowerfulThanKnives
"He stood at the window of his childhood & looked out at the Arabian Sea. The moon was almost full.."
I ask
#university
professors everywhere to speak up for Prof.
#IsmaelMashal
, a hero who publicly demanded
#women
& girls be able to study in
#Afghanistan
& ripped up his own diplomas on TV to protest their exclusion
Pls push govmts to pressure
#Taliban
for his immediate release
Concerned about yesterday's arrest of peaceful
#EducationActivist
& university lecturer
#IsmaelMashal
by Taliban. Targeting & suppressing peaceful civil activities is unacceptable & contrary to
#Afghanistan
's int obligations. I call for his immediate & unconditional release.
I'm truly honored to accept an offer to join the wonderful faculty
@UMichLaw
, the school that launched my career as an international
#lawyer
. As a half
#Algerian
, half
#Michigander
, proud Arab-American & Midwesterner, I'm thrilled to say:هيا يا أزرق Go Blue
Thread of gratitude
Women living under Taliban rule in
#Afghanistan
are battling extreme, institutionalized & systematized gender-based oppression
This treatment has a name:
#GenderApartheid
It's time for international law to heed these women & support their fight for rights
#EndGenderApartheid
Sending warm solidarity tonight to
#Palestinian
#Israeli
&
#Iranian
civilians, all part of the human family, all deserving of a just peace & of leaders who actually care about human life &
#HumanRights
World leaders must work urgently for a
#CeasefireNow
for the entire region
#Taliban
bans women's work w NGOs days after university ban
ENOUGH
Governments:PLS no more empty condemnations Time 4 ACTION PLANS
Who'll introduce General Assembly resolution 1)recognizing this as
#GenderApartheid
, 2)requiring effective, concerted intl response?
#Afghanistan
The new report by
@SR_Afghanistan
& UN Working Group on Discrimination against Women out TODAY recognizes that the situation in
#Afghanistan
consitutes
#GenderApartheid
& calls for intl action to end it
Thanks 4 this act of
#HumanRights
leadership
Thread
Thank you,
#Albania
, for your leadership
"We cannot contemplate unparalleled despicable & unacceptable gender discrimination policies & need to call them by their real name –
#GenderApartheid
. Yes, the word is strong, but the word is right"
Read. This. Excellent. Statement.👇
At the
#UNSC
meeting on UNAMA,
#AlbaniaUNSC
🇦🇱 condemned the continuous violation of every rule and principle that form the foundation of the international human rights system by the de facto authorities in
#Afghanistan
.
The situation of
#women
&
#girls
is unacceptable and it is
A good day in the fight against gender apartheid:
"Increasing global challenges demand that
#GenderApartheid
be recognised as a crime against humanity, UN experts said today, highlighting the situation of women &girls in
#Afghanistan
"
Kudos to
@UN_WGDAWG
#HappyNewYear2023
Wishing 4 a good year 4 humanity
2023 off to a happy start 4 me. Today I officially became the Lewis M. Simes
#Professor
of Law
@UMichLaw
Grateful to those who helped make this happen
Excited to train 21st century
#HumanRights
lawyers. Our world needs them
I cannot adequately express how sorry I am to hear this tragic news about the killing of
#SamanthaWoll
. What an awful loss. My sincere condolences to her family, friends, members of her synagogue & the Jewish community of metro
#Detroit
With you all in grief
I am sick to my stomach to hear about the stabbing death of Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll.
She was only 40 years old.
Woll led the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue since 2022 and was very involved in Democrat politics.
According to the news outlet, Woll
The UN published Member States' written comments on a potential crimes against humanity treaty. 6 states specifically mentioned the potential inclusion of gender apartheid as a crime against humanity and 16 raised other gendered considerations.
#EndGenderApartheid
UN experts: "denying
#women
& girls..
#abortion
services..denies them the right 2 control their fertility & sexuality, which affects their full enjoyment of their economic, social & cultural rights, incl
access 2 education, on an equal basis w men"
#SCOTUS
Read. This. Letter.
"Respect for women’s rights must be a core objective of the intl community’s engagement on
#Afghanistan
& a priority agenda item for discussions in Doha. It should also be a central part of discussions [on] any other aspect of the situation in Afghanistan"
👇
Afghan women’s rights are NOT negotiable… Read this letter which is a stern reminder as the SG convenes a meeting of diplomatic envoys on Afghanistan in… yup…Doha.
Fri Aug 26 is the anniversary of the horrific
#KabulAirportBombing
Can I ask
#media
covering the story to remember that 183 human beings died that day?
170
#Afghan
civilians & 13 U.S. soldiers
Names & photos of Afghan victims rarely published
Let's remember & mourn them all
Graca Machel, anti-apartheid icon & Mandela's widow, says of Taliban rule:
“It is a kind of apartheid, which is gender apartheid. I agree w that kind of definition..The same vigour..applied to fight apartheid should be applied in the case of
#Afghanistan
”
Women in the
#USA
have just been stripped of a huge piece of the
#equality
they've struggled for generations to achieve
DEVASTATING
I pledge to younger generations of
#women
& girls. We'll NEVER stop struggling until your reproductive rights are secured
#Dobbs
#NotGivingUp
I strongly support courageous & principled all tools approach of
@SR_Afghanistan
& salute his call to codify
#GenderApartheid
, based on his consultations w
#Afghan
women
States asked him what could be done to improve the situation of
#Afghan
women
Answer: support his approach👇
At
@UN_HRC
, I urged an “all tools” approach to challenge & dismantle Taliban’s system of gender oppression and to hold those responsible to account. This includes calling for States to support the concept of gender apartheid & its codification. See here👇
#BravestWomenInTheWorld
Hey Doha Delegates,
It's time for the international community to show as much courage & conviction in responding to
#GenderApartheid
as these women do.
Afghan women took to the street in Kabul today afternoon and asked the world not to recognize the Taliban while they were violently dispersed.
The protesters chanted “recognition of the Taliban is a disgrace to the world”, and “Afghan people are hostages of the Taliban”.
Leaked
#SCOTUS
opinion on
#abortion
confirms that fundamental
#humanrights
of
#women
in
#USA
are gravely threatened
Reflects a worldview in which women less human than men. Past inequalities simply precedent for future injustice
Critical to frame as a
#humanrights
issue
Thread
And I send solidarity to the wonderful people from Dagestan whom I have interviewed who oppose extremism - at risk of their lives - and I know are trying to do what they can
Can I ask someone to translate my Tweet above into Russian, please?
Forced hijab in
#Iran
is a serious violation of
#HumanRights
. 1000s of
#Iranian
women are arrested & prosecuted every year for rejecting it
Women everywhere can honor the memory of
#MahsaAmini
by supporting Iranian women
#humanrights
defenders on frontlines of this struggle
1/6
I congratulate my friend & former colleague
@ahmedshaheed
on his last day of work as an outstanding UN SpecialRapporteur on Freedom of
#religion
or belief. When I was
@UNSRCulture
I could always count on him 2 stand w me on tough issues. Thanks for all you’ve done 4
#humanRights
!
As a former
#UN
Special Rapporteur, I support call for a special session of UN
#HumanRights
Council on
#Iran
due to government's failure to implement UN recommendations
Support of 1/3 of Council members needed
List:
Let's find 16 nations w moral courage
Honored my article, "The Intl Obligation to Counter
#GenderApartheid
in
#Afghanistan
", published by
@ColumbiaHRLR
, has been translated into Farsi by
@AISS_Afg
. Pls watch for Oct release here:
May it be a useful resource 4 Farsi-speaking scholars & WHRDs
As part of its continuing publication and translation series, the Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies is set to release the translated version of the book “The International Obligation to Counter Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan” authored by Karima Bennoune and translated by
I ask feminists everywhere
-in addition to urgently advocating for a ceasefire & protection of
#Palestinian
civilians-
to join in calling & advocating for immediate release & humane treatment of Mia Sham who was kidnapped during a cultural festival & all other women hostages
Hamas released the first video of an Israeli hostage who is also a French citizen. Maya Sham, 21 years old. Breaks the heart. 199 hostages held in Gaza; most are held by Hamas, but some by Palestinian Jihad, and a few others with other groups.
@IzzyRWeather
I won't mute your reply because I want others to see the level of the hatred flying in all directions. My friend, you are part of the problem. You should examine your conscience
Many of us from all backgrounds will come together to find solutions in spite of all the hate-mongers
As a professor, an Arab-American, someone strongly opposed to anti-Arab racism & anti-Semitism, I'm horrified by this attack on
#Palestinian
students, incl students @ my alma mater
@BrownUniversity
. Wishing them a speedy recovery
We must ensure students are safe from hate crimes
Three young Palestinian men, Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Ali and Kenan Abdulhamid, students at Brown and other US universities, were shot last night on their way to a family dinner in Burlington, USA. Their crime? Wearing the Palestinian keffiyeh. They are critically injured. And
This Wolverine is holding the Spartans close in her heart tonight.
We must heed the words of
@JocelynBenson
. Whatever it takes to stop the slaughter of our young ones…
NOW
#MSU
The collective grief, heartbreak & horror unfolding at Michigan State tonight is unfathomable. Holding the entire MSU community in my heart. This repetitive terror cannot continue. We must come together and do whatever it takes to protect our kids & communities from gun violence.
To counter some of the disappointing & predictable responses to heroic
#protests
in
#Iran
, incl in
#academia
, I share my recent essay which calls on academics to avoid undercutting dissident
#feminist
voices, incl those of
#Muslim
heritage
(Long) Thread
Today would've been Mahfoud Bennoune's 88th birthday
Dad defied colonialism & extremism
His '95 open letter to a jihadist still relevant:
"Your movement..is the negation of reason & democracy..& of Islamic, humanist & universal values..Your movement is doomed to failure"
1/3
That is the most important question
@bbcyaldahakim
The international community must respond robustly & in keeping w the UN Charter’s “faith...in the equal rights of men & women” (UDHR)
This is
#GenderApartheid
. It must be ended thru a principled intl response
#AfghanGirlsMatter
188 days since the Taliban banned teenage girls in Afghanistan from school. They'd promised to let girls return yesterday but left millions devastated after their u-turn - citing "technical issues". What will the international community do now to hold them accountable?
The response of some US universities to student protests now a matter of concern to the
#UN
High Commissioner for
#HumanRights
See his important &thoughtful statement
"Freedom of expression & the right to peaceful assembly are fundamental to society.."🧵
Some of the bravest
#women
in the world
A reminder that Aug 15 is not just the anniversary of terrible
#Taliban
takeover of
#Afghanistan
but also marks a year of heroic women's
#HumanRights
struggle
(after many other yrs of such efforts)
Profound respect
#AmplifyAfghanVoices
As repression of women human rights defenders by the Taliban worsens, please join me & the Future Security Initiative
@ASU
for a zoom event about The International Obligation to Counter
#GenderApartheid
in
#Afghanistan
Thurs March 28, 7 PM ET
Register:
Former
#UN
#HumanRights
Experts' Open Letter on
#Rafah
"As the intl community watches Rafah teeter on the brink of an abyss of death & destruction, nothing less than..the very survival of a substantial part of the
#Palestinian
people [is] at stake"
1/12
1/ As the UN prepares to convene the next special envoys meeting in Doha, we stand in unwavering solidarity with the courageous women of Afghanistan who continue to fight for their rights and their voices to be heard.
As Netanyahu has approved plans to attack
#Rafah
, I repost an appeal by former UN
#HumanRights
experts for the Security Council & State Parties to the Genocide Convention to prevent the "real &imminent risk of physical destruction of..a substantial part of the Palestinian people"
Former
#UN
#HumanRights
Experts' Open Letter on
#Rafah
"As the intl community watches Rafah teeter on the brink of an abyss of death & destruction, nothing less than..the very survival of a substantial part of the
#Palestinian
people [is] at stake"
1/12
Can I ask everyone in the
#DC
area who cares about
#HumanRights
to join the march tomorrow?
From far away, pls show solidarity 1-5 PM ET by Tweeting to support march
#StopHazaraGenocide
In memory of Marzia, Hajar & all 53 girls slain 9/30
#Afghanistan
@jentaub
& I, friends since 10th grade geometry, a JewishAmerican & an ArabAmerican who grew up in families w different views on the Middle East, stand together to support
@omdimbeyachad
demands:
No attack on
#Rafah
#CeasefireNow
#FreeTheHostages
Join us Thurs 4a Twitter storm
For those about to re-discover
#Afghanistan
for 5 minutes on the tragic anniversary of Aug 15, please remember that
#Afghans
live w the consequences of the
#Taliban
takeover of their country
Every. Single. Day.
Let's be thoughtful in how we mark a traumatic continuing disaster
Note the important reference to the Taliban's "
#GenderApartheid
ideology" in
@HNeumannMEP
's speech
I hope to hear this language used -& the relevant intl legal obligations referenced- by more & more officials & experts in discussions of the
#HumanRights
crisis in
#Afghanistan
The terrible truth:
#Taliban
are holding women captive in their homes and they want to raise a generation of jihadi fighters.
This is why we shouldn’t even think about recognising the Taliban as legitimate rulers of
#Afghanistan
My speech:
Honored to spend sad 2nd anniversary of Taliban takeover w
#Afghan
women. Despite everything they’ve lost, all the betrayal, they continue to defy
#GenderApartheid
@AdelaRaz
: “With all the struggles in front of us, we are not giving up”
We need an intl community as determined
Proud to see work of students in my UN
#HumanRights
Practicum
@UMichLaw
on website of UN
@SREnvironment
4 his report:
#women
& right 2 a healthy environment
Kudos 2 Lauren Fleming, Marcie Rotblatt & Oieshi Saha 4 research on women &
#Flint
water crisis
Here is my LiveTweet summary of this morning's 1st session of the UN
#HumanRights
Council's dialogue on
#Afghanistan
w
@SR_Afghanistan
& Afghan women
#humanrights
defenders
on the "institutionalized system of discrimination, segregation & exclusion of women & girls"
🧵below
Poet and Novelist Heba Abu Nada, 32, Reported Dead in Israeli Bombardment.
She wrote yesterday: “If we die, know that we are content and steadfast, and convey on our behalf that we are people of truth.”
via
@arablit
Today would've been my dad Mahfoud Bennoune's 87th birthday
Born in a village in
#Algeria
, he joined the anti-colonial struggle, spent 4.5 yrs as a POW, went 2 Quranic school &
@Umich
, became a prof @ Univ of Algiers &defied extremism
I honor his memory
Aujourd'hui - 9 avril 2021 - aurait été le 85e anniversaire de mon père Mahfoud Bennoune. Un prof de l'Université d'Alger qui a survécu à la guerre, au terrorisme et à la
#torture
, il continue de m'inspirer
Il a vécu et écrit courageusement
#algerie
I love the convergence of holidays when people celebrate side-by-side, & honor or share in the cultures of others
So, I wish everyone a Happy Ramadan (respecting their choice to fast or not), a Happy Easter & a Happy Passover
We are all the "children of an infinity of cultures"
On this sad 1 month anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks
let's appeal for the hostages to be released immediately & for a
#CeasefireForGazaNOW
Let's send condolences to those who lost family on 10/7, & every awful day since, & solidarity to those whose family members were abducted
It's the 10th anniversary of publication of my book
Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here: Untold Stories from the Fight Against Muslim Fundamentalism
People of Muslim heritage continue to bravely resist extremism. Listen 2 their voices. Share their stories
1/10
Meet the panellists for the 21st
#NMAL
.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, who will deliver this year’s Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture, will be part of a panel discussion after her address.
1. Graça Machel, founder of the Graça Machel Trust and the Foundation for
I'm glad the intl media is providing thorough coverage of the terrible war in
#Ukraine
However, I'd ask journalists to consider the ethics of providing more coverage today to the fate of
#Ukrainian
zoo animals than to these casualties in
#Afghanistan
#CoverAfghanistanNow
@CNN
At the moment not a single TV news channel I can find, on any side of the political spectrum, is airing coverage of the devastating
#Evin
prison fire in
#Iran
.
Hey
@CNN
,
@MSNBC
@FoxNews
:
#CoverEvinFire
This actually IS breaking news
Evin is no ordinary prison. Many of Iran’s best & brightest have spent long stretches confined there, where brave women & men are denied their basic rights for speaking truth to power. The regime is responsible for what happens to those inside right now.
Kudos to
#Malta
#Austria
#Brazil
#Mexico
#US
for echoing views of
#Afghan
women who call for codification of
#GenderApartheid
in early debate on the draft crimes against humanity convention
Hoping more states from all regions join them & they stand strong to ensure this result
A strong start to day 2 with Malta, Austria, Brazil, Mexico & the US expressing their openness to considering gender apartheid under the draft crimes against humanity treaty, including as a part of a gender-competent & survivor-centric approach.
#EndGenderApartheid
A month ago, the Taliban sentenced protester and WHRD
#ManizhaSediqi
to 2 years in prison after abducting her in Oct 2023. Femena demands her immediate release and urges the international community to hold the Taliban accountable for assaults on WHRDs.
Please join me tomorrow (Tues March 12, 1 PM PDT, 4 PM EDT, 8 PM UK) for a virtual event w
@SFU
to discuss:
"The Intl Obligation to Counter
#GenderApartheid
in
#Afghanistan
"
Let's keep the focus on women's rights after March 8th
Great news that
@SR_Afghanistan
considering the "
#GenderApartheid
" approach which can spur more effective global response
There is precedent: Abdelfatah Amor of Tunisia, fmr
#UN
SpecialRapporteur on freedom of religion/belief, called
#Taliban
treatment of women "apartheid" in 99
Thanks to those who showed the
#HumanRights
leadership to make this inquiry on
#GenderApartheid
happen.
May other parliaments emulate this effort.
The courage of the frontline women activists in
#Afghanistan
&
#Iran
demands just such intl responses
Thanks
@UMichLaw
for featuring my work on
#GenderApartheid
in
#Afghanistan
It's a good time to remind governments & intl organizations of their obligations NOT to be complicit with apartheid
& to support
#Afghan
women
#HumanRights
defenders in their call 4 principled responses
In a new paper in the
@ColumbiaHRLR
Professor
@karimabennoune
writes that the situation in Afghanistan since the 2021 takeover by the Taliban amounts to literal apartheid, an international crime.
Dear
@antonioguterres
,
In UN Charter Art 1(3) "promoting & encouraging respect 4
#HumanRights
& 4 fundamental freedoms 4 all w.o. distinction as to..sex" is an equally important purpose & principle alongside solving humanitarian problems
How will the UN square that w👇this? 1/7
After Taliban recently extended their
#GenderApartheid
by banning Afghan women from working for the UN,
@UN
said it would have all staff work from home while considering its response. Now they’ve decided—every UN agency is free to decide, including to comply w/the Taliban order.
Please join me for a lecture 2 mark my appointment 2 the Angelo Chair in International Law: "International Law & Women’s Rights: Building the Global Jurisprudence of Sex Equality," Jan 29,12:15-1:15
@UCDavisLaw
Rm 1001, lunch served
#Davis
#California
#women
#HumanRights
#TimesUp
I was watching w my beloved grandmother Elizabeth, a longtime
@tigers
fan who was 101, & who we would lose a month later
I'll never forget how loud Grandma cheered & how happy she was at that moment
Sincere thanks to
#MagglioOrdonez
& the
#Detroit
#Tigers
for a beautiful memory
I'm very excited to announce that last week,
@fidh_en
's Board passed a resolution to align us with the movement to recognize gender apartheid in international law; read it here:
#EndGenderApartheid
“Who what am I? My answer: I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done, of everything done-to-me. I am everyone everything whose being-in-the-world affected was affected by mine.."
#RushdiesWords
#SalmanRushdie
#WordsMorePowerfulThanKnives
Listen to voices of
#Afghan
women from the frontlines about how to (& how not to) respond to latest Taliban anti-women edicts
"If intl organizations compromise our rights to be able to continue their work, we will be suffocated by the Taliban. They will be emboldened”
Please RT
Last month the Taliban opened a new front in their war on women by banning women’s employment in NGOs. We spoke with several Afghan women about the impact of this new policy and how the international community should respond
Today - Apr9 2021 - wouldve been my father Mahfoud Bennoune's 85th birthday. A Univ of
#Algiers
prof who survived war & torture, he continues 2 inspire me
He lived & wrote bravely
Pls visit 2 read abt
#Algeria
, fundamentalism
#colonialism
, women's rights
My report mandated by the HRC on an institutionalized system of discrimination, segregation & exclusion of women & girls is public and will be discussed at the Council on 18 June. It includes analysis&recommendations.
Dari&Pashto versions available soon👇
Such an honor to be a part of this amazing, diverse group of incoming faculty
@UMichLaw
.
Delighted to be able to call them all "colleague"
See you in
#AnnArbor
soon...
We are excited to introduce the hiring of a historic class of professors at Michigan Law.
20 professors in all, they bring a tremendous range of expertise and experience to our community.
Story:
A 🧵introducing each of our new faculty members:
It’s beyond disturbing that 3 Palestinian students were shot in Burlington VT in a possible hate crime. Going to dinner with a Kefiyah or Kippa speaking Arabic or Hebrew should not make a person a target for a violent attack. We pray for their recovery.
Dear
#HumanRights
#Twitter
,
In case we lose contact, thanks for all I learned from you & helping me share concerns as
@UNSRCulture
& since
In future, let's not be hoodwinked into thinking private space can be the public square
Let's find & protect true public spaces 4 exchange
I hope WHRDs from all corners of the world will join this tribute to the late, great Asma Khader, who left us much too early. She bequeaths a legacy of courage & determination in the fight for
#women
's rights. May her brave spirit continue to inspire us on the road to
#equality
On January 25, to honor the life and legacy of Asma Khader, WLP will host an event celebrating the extraordinary impact of Asma’s work in the field of gender equality and human rights in Jordan, the MENA region, and beyond. Register
As an international lawyer & former UN Special Rapporteur, I cannot find adequate words to condemn this terrible US veto at a time when
@antonioguterres
calls for a ceasefire, when
#Gaza
hospitals are out of anesthetic, when civilians are dying in the 1000s
Inhumane
Unprincipled
Human Rights Watch's
@loucharbon
statement on
@USUN
veto points out double standards "at a time of unprecedented carnage" and calls for
#UN
member states to take urgent action in the UN General Assembly.
@hrw
"..The rooted self flourished in a place it knew well, among people who knew it well, following customs & traditions w which it & its community were familiar, & speaking its own language among others who did the same.."
#RushdiesWords
#SalmanRushdie
#WordsMorePowerfulThanKnives