A landmark study finds that abstinence-focused sex education can persuade students to delay sexual activity, reports the Washington Post. These findings could have major implications for U.S. efforts to reduce unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases in young people.

Turkish police recovered the body of a sixteen-year-old girl who they believe was buried alive as punishment for talking to boys, reports the Guardian. Postmortem results found large amounts of soil in the girl's stomach and lungs. Her father and grandfather are said to have been arrested.

French authorities have denied citizenship to a man who admitted to immigration officials that he requires his French wife to wear a burqa and rejects notions of gender equality, reports the Washington Post. Little is known about the man, but news reports say he is Moroccan. Immigration minister Eric Besson stressed that the man will not be deported and is allowed to remain in France on his current long-term visa.

With the exception of Afghanistan and Brunei, women have led governments or leading opposition groups in all predominantly Muslim countries in Southeast and South Asia, discusses the New York Times. They add that these women rose to their positions through family connections; their rise shows the power of family name and political dynasty. The report concludes that the women leaders have done little to advance the rights of women in their nations.

Shazia Riaz is Associate Editor of Altmuslimah

“CAN persuade students to delay sexual activity”

AltMh is no different in its (re)reporting of science than the rest of the media, it seems. The study doesn’t say CAN, it says “may”, because it’s a small, single study, and in scientific terms, suggests the need for further research. On that basis, if these findings, alone, were used to influence policy, it might prove to be bad day for science and young people’s sexual health.

Thank you for your comment, Yakoub.

The news brief is a summary of a Washington Post article. Here is the direct quote from the Washington Post:

“Sex education classes that focus on encouraging children to remain abstinent can persuade a significant proportion to delay sexual activity, researchers reported . . ..”

The study itself concludes that abstinence-focused education may prevent sexual activity. The Washington Post article says it “can persuade.” Persuade meaning to move toward happening, and prevent—being much less passive—meaning to keep from happening.

NPR’s report of the study uses the phrase “can work.”

Altmuslimah News Briefs are synopses of what mainstream publications are putting out there rather than based on our own investigative work. We are reporting on news reports, rather than creating the news report. The briefs are not representative of the views of Altmuslimah or its editors.

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