(Copyright: Reuters/S. Modola)

Female Genital Mutilation is a crime against women. This week’s edition of Women in the News takes a look at brave women who are willing to be a witness to help other women. Read also other news about women that made it to the headlines.

Why laws (alone) won’t #endFGM

Worldwide 140 million women are affected by Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) – despite the fact that it is illegal in most countries, proving the true root of the problem can’t be tackled with legislation alone.

Read more here

Why men need to take a stand against Female Genital Mutilation

140 million women worldwide have undergone FGM, mostly because practicing communities believe it makes them a ‘better wife’. That is why one male anti-FGM activist believes men must get involved in the fight to end FGM.

Read more here.

Break with tradition, #endFGM – full episode

The pain of being cut and the trauma of having something stolen from you – female genital mutilation (FGM) affects 140 million women worldwide. Meet young women dealing with having been cut.

See the video here.

A harrowing journey

Forcibly mutilated, forcibly married, raped by her husband, raped by the trafficker who brought her to Germany. Alima (21) tells her story of pain and fear – her contribution in the fight against FGM.

Read more here.

Habiganj school girl assaulter detained after public outrage

Police this afternoon detained the assaulter who slapped the school-going girl in Habiganj Sadar which was captured on video, creating mass outrage on social media platforms.

Read more here from The Daily Star.

Kentucky Clerk jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gays

Clerks in Kentucky’s Rowan County have been ordered to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. But their defiant boss Kim Davis has refused to comply with the rules and is now in jail.

Read more here.

The suffragettes of Saudi Arabia: ‘We try and be reasonable calling for our rights’

This week, Saudi Arabian women registered to vote for the first time in the country’s history. It’s a glorious victory for campaigners – but what will they negotiate next?

Read Fariha Róisín’s blog (the Guardian) here.

Hengameh Golestan’s best photograph: Iranian women rebel against the 1979 hijab law

‘This was the last day women were able to walk the streets of Tehran with their heads uncovered’

Read more here from The Guardian.