The Price of Control: Death of an Infant Sets Off New Debate over FGM in Gambia
NEED TO KNOW
The Price of Control: Death of an Infant Sets Off New Debate over FGM in Gambia
THE GAMBIA
Earlier this month, a one-month-old baby girl, bleeding heavily, was rushed to the hospital in the Gambian capital of Banjul, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
She had undergone a procedure known as female genital mutilation (FGM).
The death set off outrage in the West African country, where the practice was banned a decade ago but remains widespread.
“That incident is more than just a case, it is a national wake-up call,” said Emmanuel Joof, chair of Gambia’s National Human Rights Commission, at a recent public event. “It is a reminder that FGM is not simply a ‘cultural practice’ – it is a criminal offence, a human rights violation, and in some cases, like this one, it is deadly.”
To date, three women have been charged in the case, the first charges related to FGM since the country attempted to reverse the ban on the practice last year. One of the suspects faces life imprisonment, while the other two were charged as accomplices and face fines and jail time.
FGM is the deliberate cutting or removal of a female’s external genitalia, usually for religious and social reasons: Researchers say it is a way to control females and preserve their virginity to make them more “marriageable.” Some practitioners argue it also prevents health problems later on in life, an assertion strongly disputed by medical professionals.
Usually, it is performed by older women in the community or traditional healers, often in unsanitary conditions with rough tools such as razor blades. As a result, it can result in serious bleeding, infections, lifelong pain, complications in childbirth, and also death: About 45,000 females die annually of FGM, according to one recent study.
More than 230 million women and girls across the world alive in 2024 have undergone the procedure, mostly in Muslim-majority countries in sub-Saharan Africa, but also in Asia and the Middle East, according to the United Nations. The organization noted a 15 percent increase in the number of FGM survivors since 2016. It labels it a form of torture.
In Gambia, the UN estimates that about 75 percent of women have had the procedure – among the top 10 highest rates in the world. Many have been cut before the age of six.
There has been a worldwide movement for years to ban FGM. Today, it is illegal in more than 70 countries.
Since The Gambia banned the practice in 2015, only three women have been convicted of defying the law. In 2023, two mothers and a practitioner, 96-year-old Yassin Fatty, were fined. Fatty said then she would never stop cutting.
Still, those convictions set off a fight. Some wanted the ban repealed and argued that FGM is part of Gambia’s culture and Islam mandates it. Religious leaders called FGM “a virtue,” and insisted that those who fight it “are fighting God.”
One advocacy group, Concerned Citizens, called on the Gambian government to stop targeting those performing the procedure.
“The people of The Gambia have consistently expressed, through various lawful means, their opposition to the ban and have instructed their elected members of parliament to repeal the said prohibition,” the group said in a statement.
In March 2024, a majority of lawmakers voted to advance a bill to overturn the ban, setting off weeks of furious campaigning by human rights activists, doctors, and other opponents of FGM.
Had it passed, the bill would have made The Gambia the first country in the world to reverse a ban on FGM. Instead, it was defeated by lawmakers last summer, but only just, and by procedural maneuvering.
“It’s such a huge sense of relief,” one survivor of FGM, Absa Samba, told the Associated Press after the vote. “But I believe this is just the beginning of the work.”
The ban was immediately challenged with a petition filed with the Gambian Supreme Court. That decision is pending.
“There is more to come in Gambia,” Nimco Ali, an FGM survivor and anti-FGM activist, told NPR. “The Imam has stated that once the ban is repealed, then the next (goal) will be to repeal laws against child marriage.”
Meanwhile, the procedure continues in secrecy, and activists such as Fatou Baldeh, founder of the group Women In Leadership and Liberation, told the BBC there has been an increase in FGM procedures being performed on babies in the country.
“Parents feel that if they cut their girls when they’re babies, they heal quicker,” she said. “But also, because of the law, they feel that if they perform it at such a young age, it’s much easier to disguise, so that people don’t know.”
THE WORLD, BRIEFLY
Israel Resumes Ceasefire Talks, UN Declares Famine in Gaza
ISRAEL / WEST BANK & GAZA
Negotiations on a ceasefire and the release of hostages in the Gaza Strip would resume “on terms acceptable to Israel,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced this week, even as his cabinet prepares a major offensive to seize Gaza City, Reuters reported.
It was Netanyahu’s first response to a ceasefire proposal brokered by Egypt and Qatar, which Hamas accepted last Monday, and comes as Israel faces mounting international condemnation after a United Nations-backed monitor declared that Gaza is suffering a man-made famine as a result of the ongoing conflict.
The proposed deal calls for a 60-day truce during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and 18 bodies in exchange for about 200 Palestinian prisoners, followed by negotiations for a permanent ceasefire and the return of the remaining captives.
Speaking to soldiers near the Gaza border, Netanyahu said Israel is in “the decision-making phase.” Other officials said the government will send negotiators to talks once the location is set.
Observers noted that his comments underscore Israel’s insistence that any ceasefire deal ensure the return of the remaining 50 hostages captured in Israel during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel believes roughly 20 of them are still alive.
Netanyahu also insisted that Israel would press ahead with battle plans to capture Gaza City, where tanks have advanced over the past 10 days. The offensive was approved by Israel’s security cabinet earlier this month despite warnings from allies that it would deepen the humanitarian crisis.
Following his comments, Benny Gantz, a former defense minister and Netanyahu’s political rival, urged the formation of a temporary unity government to prioritize a hostage deal, France 24 noted.
Gantz emphasized that Israel’s duty is “first and foremost to save lives.” His support could possibly sideline ultranationalist ministers who oppose any truce. Already, ultra-Orthodox parties have threatened to abandon Netanyahu’s unstable coalition over conscription reforms.
Analysts suggest that the war and associated famine could trigger a political collapse: Netanyahu continues to face domestic pressure with weekly protests demanding a deal to free hostages and end the war.
Internationally, Israel’s allies, including the United Kingdom, France, and Canada, have voiced alarm over both the Gaza offensive and Israel’s approval of a contentious settlement plan in the West Bank.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) said Friday that Gaza City and its surrounding areas were suffering a famine, with more than 500,000 people facing “catastrophic” hunger.
The monitor projected that by September, nearly 641,000 people could face famine-level conditions, warning of escalating child malnutrition and deaths. UN Secretary General António Guterres called the situation “a man-made disaster” and “a failure of humanity,” according to the BBC.
Israel strongly rejected the IPC findings, calling them an “outright lie” and accusing the monitor of using flawed methods and Hamas sources.
Netanyahu’s office said Israel “has a policy of preventing starvation,” citing the entry of two million tons of aid and recent food airdrops, and blamed Hamas for looting supplies, the Times of Israel added.
The conflict began shortly after Hamas and its allies launched an attack in southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping more than 250 others, in October 2023. Israel responded with ground offensives and airstrikes that have killed at least 62,000 Palestinians in the enclave, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Countries Suspend Package Deliveries to US After End of Tariff Exemptions
WORLD
Postal services across Europe and Asia will suspend shipments to the United States as countries scramble to adapt to the end of a decades-old tariff exemption on low-value goods, the Washington Post reported Sunday. Ordered by President Donald Trump, the end of the exemption will take effect Thursday.
Over the weekend, national mail operators in Germany, Spain, France, Belgium, and the United Kingdom all announced temporary halts to parcel services bound for the US.
Belgium’s Bpost already suspended shipments Friday, and Spain’s Correos is set to stop accepting packages worth less than $800 on Monday. The UK’s Royal Mail said it expects to suspend deliveries for a day or two before introducing a new system, while France’s La Poste warned it may also have to pause shipments unless a last-minute solution is found, according to Politico.
Similar suspensions have been announced around Asia by countries including India, South Korea, Singapore, New Zealand, and Australia.
The changes follow Trump’s executive order abolishing the so-called “de minimis” exemption, a rule dating back to the 1930s that exempted goods valued at $800 or less from tariffs. The exemption – raised from $200 to $800 under the Obama administration – had benefited small businesses, online sellers, and global retailers, particularly those importing cheap goods from China.
Trump ended the exemption for China and Hong Kong in May and canceled it for all countries starting Aug. 29, framing the move as part of his fight against illegal drug trafficking.
Under the new system, parcels will face additional duties of $80 to $200, depending on the tariff rate of their country of origin. However, letters, documents, and personal gifts worth less than $100 remain exempt.
Postal operators warned that the change will delay shipments and increase costs, and some noted that import duties may need to be prepaid before packages leave for the US.
The announcement comes just weeks after Washington and Brussels struck a trade deal to ease tensions over earlier tariff disputes.
Anti- and Pro-Immigrant Protests Grip the United Kingdom
UNITED KINGDOM
Protests and counterprotests broke out across the United Kingdom over the weekend as demonstrators demanded an end to housing asylum seekers in hotels, while others rallied to the migrants’ support, Al Jazeera noted.
In response, the Labour government has vowed to reform the asylum system while appealing a court ruling that blocked the use of one such hotel.
Demonstrations under the “Abolish Asylum System” banner took place on Saturday in various UK cities and towns, including Bristol, Liverpool, and London, as well as in parts of Wales and Northern Ireland.
Police in riot gear and on horses were deployed to separate anti-migrant activists from anti-racism protesters, and clashes were reported in several areas. In Liverpool, authorities arrested 11 people on charges including assault and public disorder.
The weekend protests came days after the UK High Court granted a temporary injunction blocking a hotel in Epping, Essex, from accommodating asylum seekers.
The ruling came after weeks of demonstrations at the venue triggered by the arrest of a hotel resident accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.
The government said Friday it would appeal the ruling. Minister of State for Security Dan Jarvis stressed that the administration remained committed to closing all asylum hotels by 2029 but would do so “in a managed and ordered way.”
The Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, said Sunday that the government would establish a new independent body to speed up asylum appeals and reduce the reliance on hotels, Agence France-Presse wrote.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and his government have come under intense scrutiny over their immigration policies. Official figures have shown that the arrivals of migrants and asylum seekers have increased to a record high, with more people being housed in hotels compared with last year.
Government data shows that more than 32,000 asylum seekers have been temporarily housed in these hotels as of March. The figures also show that a record 111,084 people had applied for asylum in the UK by the end of June.
Meanwhile, more than 50,000 people have crossed the English Channel in small boats since Starmer took office last year.
Amid the unrest, the far-right Reform party’s leader Nigel Farage vowed mass deportations and the withdrawal from international refugee treaties should he ultimately take power.
DISCOVERIES
Cute, and Deadly
Some ancient whales were far from the gentle giants we know today.
Scientists have identified a razor-toothed cetacean that terrorized the warm seas of what is now Victoria, Australia, around 26 million years ago.
Named Janjucetus dullardi, the prehistoric mammal packed slicing teeth, a short snout, and forward-facing eyes that would have made it a fearsome predator.
Although it was smaller than its modern cousins – about the size of the dolphin – it was not docile, according to Ruairidh Duncan, lead author of a new study.
“Imagine the shark-like version of a baleen whale – small and deceptively cute, but definitely not harmless,” he said in a statement.
Duncan and his colleagues explained that J. dullardi belonged to a prehistoric group of whales known as mammalodontids, which were distant, smaller relatives of today’s filter-feeding whales.
Their discovery came nearly six years after local resident Ross Dullard discovered the creature’s well-preserved partial skull along Victoria’s Surf Coast. Dullard donated the fossil to Museums Victoria, which later named the new species in his honor.
The findings mark the fourth mammalodontid species ever discovered worldwide. Three were found in Victoria state.
It also prompted senior study author Eric Fitzgerald to quip that J. dullardi was uniquely Australian.
“If they were alive today, they would be as iconically Australian as a kangaroo,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Meanwhile, the research team noted that Surf Coast lies on the Jan Juc formation, a geological site dating to the Oligocene epoch between 23 and 30 million years ago, CBS News noted.
Because there have been a series of rare fossils discovered in the area, the research team believes further studies can shed some light on early whale evolution.
“This region was once a cradle for some of the most unusual whales in history, and we’re only just beginning to uncover their stories,” Fitzgerald said in the statement. “We’re entering a new phase of discovery.”