In the third issue of the Journal of Women and Human Rights in the Middle East, students explore the various aspects of women in conflict. Essay topics range from the effects of armed conflict on women's economic participation to housing dilemmas for Syrian refugees in Lebanon.

On May 22, the House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015, which specifies the budget and expenditures of the United States Department of Defense and sets the policies under which money (somewhat in excess of $600 billion) will be spent on our country’s defense. However, an amendment added to the bill will keep the Department of Defense from preparing for or performing any military activities that include any construction related to climate change.

While much media attention recently has focused on the geopolitical fault lines that connect Syria’s violence to wider region-wide trends, the plight of individual women, men, and children displaced within Syria or living in camps beyond its borders shows no sign of ending. As Secretary of State John Kerry has stated, the humanitarian situation in Syria is "an outrage" but the violence only looks set to worsen as opposition groups turn on each other and radical trans-national elements feed off the resulting vacuum of authority and control. This is the task as the international community prepares to reconvene in Switzerland on January 22, writes Baker Institute fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen in the Baker Institute Blog.

Edward Djerejian, founding director of Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and former U.S. ambassador to Syria and Israel, issued the following statement on the passing of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

The case for increased opportunities for girls' education in the Arab world.

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Executive Summary

Syria, by many measures and…

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Executive Summary

Key Findings

• Resolution…

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When U.S. President Barack Obama addressed the…

The authors in this special issue discuss how women's voices are excluded, silenced and marginalized in settings and processes such as war, displacement, democratization, labor market, judicial system, state bureaucracy, nonprofit organizations and national debates on citizenship. They also discover how women found their voices, channeled them, modified them, and gained a measure of empowerment.