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Trump Wins South Carolina, Beating Nikki Haley in Her Home State

FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023, at Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023, at Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
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Trump Wins South Carolina, Beating Nikki Haley in Her Home State

FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023, at Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures after speaking Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023, at Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Donald Trump easily defeated Nikki Haley in South Carolina's Republican contest on Saturday, extending his winning streak as he marches toward a third consecutive presidential nomination and a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden.

The former president had been widely favored to win the Southern state, despite his litany of criminal charges and Haley's status as a native of South Carolina who won two terms as governor.

The big win bolstered calls from Trump's allies that Haley, his last remaining challenger, should drop out of the race.

But Haley, who outperformed expectations based on opinion polls, defiantly insisted she would fight on at least through "Super Tuesday" on March 5, when Republicans in 15 states and one US territory will cast ballots.

Trump won with 59.8% support against 39.5% for Haley with 99% of the expected vote tallied, according to Edison Research. Statewide opinion polls before Saturday had given Trump an average lead of 27.6 percentage points, according to the tracking website 538, Reuters reported.

"Forty percent is not some tiny group," Haley said of her vote share. "There are huge numbers of voters in our Republican primaries who are saying they want an alternative."

Trump has dominated all five Republican primary contests thus far - in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, the US Virgin Islands and now Haley's home state - leaving Haley with no evident path to the Republican nomination.

Trump gave his victory speech in Columbia, the state capital, minutes after the polls closed and did not mention Haley, claiming his party's mantle as he looked ahead to November's general election.

"I have never seen the Republican Party so unified as it is right now," he said.

In recent days Haley had notably sharpened her attacks on Trump, questioning his mental acuity and warning voters he would lose the general election to Biden.

But there is scant evidence that a majority of Republican voters is interested in any standard-bearer except Trump.

Immigration, which Trump has made a focus of his campaign, was the number one issue for voters on Saturday, according to an Edison exit poll. Some 39% cited that issue, above the 33% who said the economy was their top concern.

Approximately 84% of voters said the economy is not so good or poor, highlighting a major potential weakness for Biden in November's general election.

Once again, however, exit polls also pointed to Trump's own vulnerabilities. Nearly one-third of voters said he would be unfit to serve as president if he were convicted of a crime.

Trump's first criminal trial is scheduled to begin on March 25 in New York City. He is charged with falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 campaign.

He faces three other sets of charges, including a federal indictment alleging he conspired to reverse Biden's election victory in 2020. Trump has pleaded not guilty in every case and claimed, with no evidence, that the charges stem from a Democratic conspiracy to derail his campaign.

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UN Report: 40% of War-Related Deaths are Women, and 30% are Children

The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)
The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)
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UN Report: 40% of War-Related Deaths are Women, and 30% are Children

The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)
The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023 (Reuters)

While the proportion of women killed in armed conflicts doubled last year compared to 2022, the situation will not be any better in 2024, according to the annual report by the Office of UN Secretary-General on the protection of civilians in war contexts.
The report, released a few days ago, paints a very bleak picture of what women have suffered in armed conflicts in 2023.
It said 40% of civilians killed in armed conflict in 2023 were women, twice as many as in 2022. The number of children who lost their lives (30%) also tripled.
The report also highlights an exponential increase in civilian casualties, with at least 33,443 non-combatants killed in 2023, a 73% rise from the previous year.
Gaza City...70% of Recorded Deaths
The majority of recorded deaths, 70%, occurred in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the deadliest conflict for civilians in 2023, the report said.
Policy Specialist on Peace and Security at UN Women, Pablo Castillo said the increase in the proportion of women who died in armed conflict occurred “in all wars.”
“The reason [for this trend] is the growing disregard for international law and humanitarian standards amid a backdrop of both cold and hot wars between superpowers, along with a general geopolitical climate that challenges multilateralism,” said Castillo. “Additionally, there is a discernible trend of attacking anything that can be identified as feminism.”
UN Women contributed to reports on women, peace, and security and which highlighted the alarming figures regarding female mortality in conflict zones.
“The world is caught in a frightening spiral of conflict, instability and violence. In 2023, more than 170 armed conflicts were recorded, and approximately 612 million women and girls lived within 50 km of these conflicts, 150% more than just a decade ago,” stated the UN report on women, peace and security.
Another “alarming” finding revealed by the study is the 50% increase in cases of sexual assault in conflict zones, along with a 35% rise in serious rape cases involving girls in these countries.
This is emphasized by Cristina Sanchez, a law professor at the Autonomous University of Madrid and an expert on the intersection of war and gender.
“These are not random acts; sexual violence is a targeted and effective weapon of war. It not only serves to displace populations from their homes but also functions as a bargaining chip, with women being sold among terrorist groups as a means of financing,” she said.
The UN describes this situation as “a war on women,” noting that they are affected in numerous ways beyond death and rape.
For instance, access to healthcare is becoming increasingly restricted.
Every day, 500 women and girls in conflict-affected countries die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth.
“An estimated 52,000 pregnant women have been caught in the war, with an estimated 180 deliveries every day, most of them without access to anesthetics for cesarean sections and without water, sanitation, nutrition or postpartum care,” stated the UN report.
“A pregnant patient from a rural area had to wait two days to get the money she needed to receive care,” said Maria Fix, head of the Doctors Without Borders team in South Darfur, Sudan.
“When she finally reached a health center, they had no medicines, so she returned home. After three days, her condition worsened, but she again had to wait five hours to be transferred. She was in a coma when she reached us. She died of a preventable infection,” she added.
Absence of International Awareness
For the first time, the report mentioned a direct criticism to the so-called “basic public awareness about these injustices.”
The report also criticized the lack of media coverage: although reports on wars increased sixfold between 2013 and 2023, only 5% focused on women’s experiences.
“In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war has been denounced for decades. And nothing happens. This also sends a message of impunity,” said Sanchez.
In that country, the UN reported over 123,000 cases of gender violence in 2023, a 300% increase over three years, which has not been accompanied by a rise in convictions.
The neglect is also evident in the reduced funding for organizations focused on gender equality and specific programs aimed at mitigating the impact of war on women, the report showed.
Women are frequently excluded from peace negotiations, “despite the fact that it is known that increased female participation leads to more robust and lasting agreements,” said Castillo.
Instead of progress, attacks against women’s rights activists have intensified. “Anti-gender and anti-feminist movements are well-organized and have at their disposal considerable financial resources,” said the report.
In several countries, including Iraq, Libya, and Yemen, local or national authorities have even banned the term “gender” and restricted or persecuted activities advocating for equality.
In Afghanistan, “the oppression of Afghan women is severe,” the report said.
Girls over the age of 12 have been denied the right to education for three years, among various other restrictions that have led the UN to classify the situation as gender apartheid.