Tunisia on Thursday commemorated the 10th anniversary since the flight into exile of iron-fisted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who was pushed from power in a popular revolt that foreshadowed pro-democracy uprisings, strife, and civil war in the region during what became known as the Arab Spring. But there were no festive celebrations marking the as the government imposed a four-day lockdown starting Thursday to contain the coronavirus.

Lebanon announced a full lockdown for three weeks, including a night curfew, to stem a rise in COVID-19 infections that threatens to overwhelm hospitals in a country already facing financial meltdown.

Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hasan said the lockdown would start on Thursday and run until February 1, with further details on Tuesday on which sectors would be exempt. The lockdown will include a curfew from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Lebanon registered 2,870 new infections on Sunday, bringing its total to 189,278 cases and 1,486 deaths since February 21.

In what UN Women describes as the “shadow pandemic,” rates of violence against women have soared since the public health and economic crises brought about by COVID-19. With stay-at-home orders in place in countries around the world, women are more susceptible than ever to domestic violence. In countries affected by conflict or repressive rule, all forms of sexual and gender-based violence are on the rise. The ICTJ Gender Modules offer a timely tool to raise awareness about these issues and help develop gender-sensitive responses to them. 

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) on Friday sentenced fugitive Hezbollah member Salim Jamil Ayyash to five terms of life imprisonment for the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.