The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief says women in the Gaza Strip have recently felt coerced into covering their heads, while Christians there have faced rising intolerance.

The UN envoy, Asma Jahangir, visited Israel and the Palestinian Authority last week and published a report on her eight-day trip.  "Women seem to be in a particularly vulnerable situation and bear the brunt of religious zeal. I was informed about cases of honor killings carried out with impunity in the name of religion," she added.

Jahangir met with Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar and Minister of Religious Affairs Yitzhak Cohen, as well as many others involved in religious affairs. The UN representative expressed surprise to Amar that women were not allowed to serve as religious court judges. Amar answered that the study of religious law is a burden that women are exempt from, but this did not satisfy Jahangir, who said human rights were advancing and religions were remaining behind.                      

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