Press Release
Al-Quds University Is Holding a Conference with Western Funding and a Western-designed Program Under the Slogan "Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment"
(Translated)

On Tuesday, December 2, 2025, the Faculty of Law at Al-Quds University – Abu Dis launched the international conference entitled "Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment: Challenges, Solutions, and Best Practices in the Mediterranean Region," in collaboration with the Palestinian Ministry of Women's Affairs, the Forum of Non-Governmental Organizations for Combating Violence Against Women, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the University of Perugia, Italy, with the support of Italian cooperation.

On the first day of the conference, researchers presented their papers, which were showcased and discussed in the main university campus.  Academics, experts, policymakers, and representatives from civil society participated in the discussions and listened to the findings, which were organized around four main themes: Violence against women, gender equality in the labor market and workplace, women and society, and gender and government sectors, including a focus on the Italian experience. The conference spanned three days. The second day included a roundtable discussion with civil society partners, where applied research was presented at the Women's Center for Legal and Social Guidance. The final day was dedicated to a workshop held at the Ministry of Women's Affairs and other relevant government agencies. The conference concluded with a roundtable discussion bringing together government officials, partners, researchers, and civil society organizations to develop a plan for implementing the conference's final recommendations.

This conference, funded and programmed by the West and attended by suspicious figures and organizations associated with CEDAW, comes within the framework of the relentless war waged by Western colonial powers and their tools against Islam and its rulings, particularly those concerning the social system, focusing on women and raising deceptive and ambiguous slogans such as equality, empowerment, and rights. This is reflected in the conference title, "Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment," slogans that conceal poison in honey.  Through these slogans, they encourage women to rebel against the rulings of their Lord and the guidance of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), to leave the protection of their families and husbands, and to rebel against them. Moreover, they bring misery upon women, burdening them with responsibilities beyond their capacity, and forcing them to violate their innate nature and biological makeup to be equal to men, who are fundamentally different from them in terms of abilities and capacities. Allah Almighty created both men and women and assigned roles to each according to their nature and capabilities. He made them equal in some duties and rulings, while assigning specific rulings and responsibilities to one without the other, without diminishing the status of either. Under the pretext of empowering women, they have turned them into commodities to promote their goods, forcing them to work to earn a living so that they are not "at the mercy of men!" They exploit them in arduous jobs and pay them the lowest wages. These ideas and slogans are worthless and would have benefited their proponents if they contained any good. Consider the situation of women in the countries that promote these slogans, including Italy, whose "experience in this field" is supposedly being used as a model, where a woman is killed every three days by her partner or family!

Universities are fundamentally meant to be beacons of knowledge and virtue, not platforms for corruption and malicious ideologies. Their purpose is to produce educated and aware generations who care deeply about their Ummah and religion and strive for its advancement. What, then, can be said about universities in the Blessed Land of Palestine, where the people of Gaza are subjected to a brutal war of extermination, and those in the West Bank face the crimes of the Jewish army and settler gangs, their lands confiscated, their homes and properties demolished, and their lives made unbearable in an attempt to force them to leave? Not far from the university that bears the name of al-Quds, its people are subjected to harassment and persecution, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque is desecrated, with Talmudic prayers and rituals being performed within its sacred precincts. Therefore, it is clear that the targeting of schools and universities and the focus on them is not without reason, but rather to produce generations alienated from their Deen and Ummah, generations that do not care about its advancement or the liberation of its land and holy sites.

By insisting on holding this conference despite the rejection of the people of Palestine and their appeals to cancel it, and despite the protests by students, community leaders, and parents, the university administration has disgraced itself and become complicit in these suspicious activities. It has proven that the money of its donors is more valuable to it than religion and honor, and that their word is supreme. They impose their conditions and will in exchange for this insidious funding. Look at the outcomes and recommendations of the conference, and you will see that among its provisions is the amendment or repeal of existing legislation, particularly personal status laws, in accordance with CEDAW, which contradicts Islamic Shariah and calls for "changing or amending legislation" to conform to its provisions. Furthermore, if the entities supporting and participating in this conference are truly concerned about the women of Palestine, as they claim, why have we not heard a single word from them regarding the brutal crimes committed against these women by the Jewish entity? Why have they not acted to support them and alleviate their suffering? Is it possible that there are still people in Palestine who have not yet discovered the true nature of these entities and institutions and their malicious objectives?

In conclusion, we would like to emphasize an important point: We are not against women receiving the rights granted to them by Islamic Shariah, nor are we against them having their rightful place and active role in society. Do not be deceived by attempts to distort the image of Islam and accuse it of oppressing women and depriving them of their rights. Examine the religious texts, the lives of Muslims, and their history to discover this elevated status and the rights that Islam has bestowed upon women. By Allah, we desire what is good and beneficial for them in this world and the hereafter, while these corrupt individuals wish for their misery and ruin in both worlds.

O People of the Blessed Land, and O Young Men and Women:

Stand firm against the conspiracies being plotted against you and your families.  Fear Allah in matters of your Deen, your honor, and your children. Do not leave them vulnerable to the colonial powers and their agents.

[يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَاراً وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُ عَلَيْهَا مَلَائِكَةٌ غِلَاظٌ شِدَادٌ لَّا يَعْصُونَ اللَّهَ مَا أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ]

“O believers! Protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones, overseen by formidable and severe angels, who never disobey whatever Allah orders—always doing as commanded.” [At-Tahrim 66:6]

Women’s Section
in The Central Media Office
of Hizb ut Tahrir