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The cleric who heads the Saudi morality police said he is taking steps to rein in the force, the latest move by authorities aimed at improving the position of women in Saudi society amid a public outcry in social media.Sheik Abdulatif al-Sheikh, appointed by King Abdullah in January to head the religious police, told The Wall Street Journal that he plans to distribute guidelines to all members of his force making clear that they don't have the power to arrest or interrogate Saudi citizens, or to attend trials.

Every morning before school, nine-year-old Terisia Techu would undergo a painful procedure. Her mother would take a burning hot pestle straight out of a fire and use it to press her breasts.

India: Dabra is a typical village in India's rural Haryana state. It has narrow lanes with open drains and small houses built of brick and mud. Children play in the dirt, while men sit around smoking. Not many outsiders visit this poor farming community.But outside one of the houses two policemen stand on guard. Inside, a 16-year-old girl sits in one of the rooms surrounded by women. She is the reason the police are here. Six weeks ago, she was out walking on the street when she was abducted by a dozen men. 

News that Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has won the Sakharov Prize – an award from the European Parliament for human rights and freedom of thought - came as her health deteriorated due to a hunger strike in protest at the Iranian authorities’ refusal to allow her face-to-face visits with her 13-year-old daughter and five-year-old son.