An Afghan woman wanted to be a doctor. Now she makes pickles as the Taliban restricts women's roles

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Frozan Ahmadzai is one of 200,000 Afghan women who have the Taliban’s permission to work. She should have graduated from university this year in pursuit of her dream of becoming a doctor, but the Taliban have barred women from higher education and excluded them from...

In wake of Supreme Court ruling, Biden administration tells doctors to provide emergency abortions

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration told emergency room doctors they must perform emergency abortions when necessary to save a pregnant woman’s health, following last week's Supreme Court ruling that failed to settle a legal dispute over whether state abortion bans override a federal law...

Only 17% of targets to improve life around the world are likely to be reached by 2030, UN reports

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations warned Friday that only 17% of its 169 targets to improve life for the world’s more than 7 billion people are on track to be reached by the 2030 deadline. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres launched the annual report saying, “It...

Despite Supreme Court ruling, the future of emergency abortions is still unclear for US women

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court did not settle the debate over whether federal law requires hospitals to stabilize pregnant patients with emergency abortions on Wednesday, despite saying Idaho hospitals can provide abortions in medical emergencies even with the state’s restrictions. ...

Preeclampsia can be fatal for pregnant people and babies. New blood tests aim to show who's at risk

When you're expecting a baby, you hope nothing goes wrong. But at least one in 20 people who are pregnant develop a scary complication called preeclampsia, a high blood pressure disorder that kills 70,000 women and 500,000 babies worldwide every year. There was no way to know when it...

More African nations focus on HPV vaccination against cervical cancer, but hesitancy remains

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Yunusa Bawa spends a lot of time talking about the vaccine for the human papillomavirus that is responsible for nearly all cases of cervical cancer. But on most days, only two or three people allow their daughters to be vaccinated in the rural part of Nigeria where he works....

UN envoy defends failure to include Afghan women in upcoming meeting with the Taliban in Qatar

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations' top official in Afghanistan defended the failure to include Afghan women in the upcoming first meeting between the Taliban and envoys from 22 countries, insisting that demands for women’s rights are certain to be raised. U.N. special...

An anti-abortion group in South Dakota sues to take an abortion rights initiative off the ballot

An anti-abortion group in South Dakota has sued to block an abortion rights measure from the November ballot. In its complaint filed Thursday, Life Defense Fund alleged various wrongdoing by the measure's supporters, as well as invalid signatures and fraud. The group seeks to...

Texas Supreme Court rejects challenge to abortion ban from women who say their health was put at risk during pregnancies

Planned Parenthood asks judge to expand health exception to Indiana abortion ban

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Abortion providers are asking an Indiana trial judge this week to broaden access to abortions under the state's near-total ban. Indiana law allows for abortion in rare circumstances, including when the health or life of the woman is at risk, but only at a...