In-depth

Between advances and setbacks, the battle for the sexualand reproductive rights of Mediterranean women is far from won. This new report examines the struggle of women on both sides of the Mediterranean to regain control over their bodies

In Morocco, abortion is still criminalized under the penal code, pushing large numbers of women and girls to resort to unsafe methods of pregnancy termination. Many suffer severe health complications, sometimes even death. Despite hundreds of clandestine abortions occurring daily, the legal situation remains unchanged. Human rights organizations continue to call for decriminalization and for guaranteeing women’s right to terminate pregnancies safely and under proper health conditions, without fear of prosecution or arrest.

It was not until 2010 that Spain adopted a legal framework authorizing abortion for women up to 14 weeks and 22 weeks in cases of fetal anomaly. Despite this, numerous obstacles remain, such as conscientious objection by healthcare professionals. Some women, such as migrant women, also have difficulty accessing this right. It’s a topic at the heart of current affairs in the country.

Policing, exploitation, and the push for abolition leave migrant sex workers in Spain without protection or recognition.

Every year on September 26, the world marks World Contraception Day. Yet many girls and women still lack access to their chosen and adequate method of contraception—not only on this day, but throughout the year. In Serbia, contraceptive methods are generally available, but limited finances and the absence of reliable information make consistent and reliable contraception inaccessible for many women.

Women have always been a powerful force of resistance against Italian organized crime. Those who dared to defy the godfathers paid with their lives for denouncing the violence they suffered, demonstrating that it is possible to overturn the ruthless code of revenge and omertà to obtain truth and justice. In this final article of a three-piece series dedicated to the role of women in the Italian mafias, we recount several stories of rebels, a way of paying tribute to all those who challenged the mafia order.

In the Algerian collective imagination, female sexuality remains confined to the triptych of marriage, motherhood, and silence. This investigation explores these zones of imposed silence, where pleasure becomes an act of rebellion, particularly for the most invisible women—those with disabilities.

In Türkiye, abortion is legal but increasingly out of reach. Amid rising conservatism and pronatalist policies, women’s bodies have become a political battleground, caught between state-backed family ideals and the struggle for reproductive autonomy.

In Türkiye, abortion is a right that exists on paper but not in women’s lives. For Syrian refugees, legal barriers, economic hardship, and religious coercion turn a guaranteed freedom into an impossible decision, forcing many to give birth against their will.

In North Africa and beyond, Tunisia has in just a few years become a recognized destination for couples seeking medically assisted reproduction. Patients’ experiences highlight gender norms and the burden of infertility, which is not without economic and social consequences, especially for women.