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Hawlati, an independent Kurdish newspaper, recently published articles debating the practice of female circumcision, often referred to as Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), in Iraqi-Kurdistan. FGM is a major problem in most of Islamic societies, and the practice has a tremendous cost—many girls bleed to death or die of infection.

Ivar Dale, right, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee’s representative in Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek, was refused entry to the country when he returned there on Sunday after having attended a seminar in Norway. Bjørn Engesland, Secretary General of the NHC, believes the series of harassments the organisation has been subjected to is politically motivated.

In the Iraqi city of Kirkuk, an unidentified gunman assassinated Diyar Abbas Ahmed, a twenty-eight-year-old Kurdish journalist, yesterday. Abbas Ahmed worked for Iraq Eye Media and several other media stations, including a television station sponsored by a Kurdish political party. The Committee to Protect Journalists says that violence against ethnic minorities, journalists and human rights defenders is escalating in the area.

94th Session.

Information Workshop for the Human Rights House Network.

On 28 September 2008 Belarusians elected members of the House of Representatives. These elections were internationally expected to bring further positive changes on the country´s political arena, but unfortunately the elections fell short of OSCE’s standards. National observers stated numerous violations of international standards. However EU still wants a dialogue with official Minsk (01-OCT-08).  
 

The Human Rights House Foundation (HRHF) has called Pastor Bulambo Lembelembe Josué, right, and congratulated him as the winner of this year´s Rafto Award. Pastor Bulambo expressed his gratitude for the award to the Rafto Foundation and confirmed that he will attend the seminar and award ceremony in Bergen early November. (25-SEP-08)
 

Renewed combat in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has caused a drastic deterioration in the humanitarian situation and immense suffering for civilians, the Congo Advocacy Coalition, a group of 83 aid agencies and human rights groups, said today. The coalition called for urgent action to improve protection of civilians and an immediate increase in assistance to vulnerable populations. Right, militias in Ituri. (25-SEP-08)
 

The 2008 Professor Thorolf Rafto Memorial Prize is awarded to Pastor Bulambo Lembelembe Josué, right, for his dedication to end the plight of the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). (25-SEP-08)