Palestinian penal code does not protect women, needs updating says PA minister

PA Ministry of Women's Affairs Director of Planning, Research, and Gender Studies Shadi Barghouti: "At the [PA] Ministry of Women's Affairs, we emphasize and act on the need to develop the legal framework to ensure effective protection for women, including expediting the legislation and updating of relevant laws, such as the outdated Penal Code, particularly the Personal Status Law and a collection of other laws that need to be worked on and that no longer serve our time period. There are also loopholes in the law that weaken the protection of women, such as mitigating circumstances that allow perpetrators of crimes to escape punishment."

[Voice of Palestine, official PA radio station, Facebook page, March 25, 2026]