[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/11/16/christianetom.jpg caption caption="Sr. Writer for Amanpour, Tom Evans, works on scripts with Christiane"]
On AMANPOUR. we focus on women in the Muslim world on this International Women’s Day. Are women’s rights compatible with Islam? Christiane looks at Sunday’s national elections in Iraq with a political activist working to get more women elected to the Iraqi Parliament. And then, Christiane sits down with three leading women activists from elsewhere in the Middle East to discuss the pressing issues in their respective countries and the region as a whole. From honor killings, to repressive family laws and added economic burdens exacerbated by the financial crisis, these three leaders are educating and organizing women to lobby their governments on gender equality in all realms. With the threat of encroaching Islamic fundamentalism, will women’s hard-won gains be reversed? The Iraqi election is among the top stories today. Here are some perspectives.
Tom Evans
Sr. Writer, AMANPOUR.
IRAQ – Will Sunday’s parliamentary elections help decrease sectarian and ethnic tensions in the country?
– Head of Iraq’s election commission tells Associated Press turnout for poll was 55 to 60 percent, which is down from roughly 76 percent in parliamentary elections in December 2005
– Faraj al-Haidari told AP the preliminary results are likely to be released in the next two to three days, most likely on Thursday
– U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Christopher Hill says overall, it was a “very successful election”. U.S. Commander, General Ray Odierno, say U.S. will draw down forces to 50,000 troops by the first of September, as scheduled, for a train and advise mission.
QUESTION: Will U.S. be forced to leave some combat troops in northern Iraq past September 1st because of tensions in that part of Iraq?
AFGHANISTAN – Is Iran challenging U.S. military presence in Afghanistan?
– U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrives in Afghanistan on unannounced visit, on same day Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was due there. Iran said Ahmadinejad’s visit has now been postponed until middle of the month
– Gates: “Iran is playing a double game in Afghanistan. They want to maintain a good relationship with the Afghan government. They also want to do everything they possibly can to hurt us, or for us not to be successful.”
– Gates comments come as tensions between U.S. and Iran increase over Tehran’s refusal to suspend its nuclear enrichment program and America tries to enlist international support for new sanctions
QUESTION: Is Tehran helping the Taliban in Afghanistan?
NIGERIA – Is Nigeria on the brink of a major explosion of sectarian violence?
– At least 200 people killed in central Nigeria after members of a machete-wielding Muslim group attacked mostly christian villages. One NGO put the death toll even higher, at almost 500
– Nigerian Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, who is acting head of state, puts security on high alert and begins operations to apprehend what he calls the “roving band of killers”
– Violence resembled previous outbreaks of ethnic and religious clashes in Nigeria
QUESTION: What should the Nigerian government do to prevent further sectarian attacks now and in the longer term?