Iran tends to dominate the news cycle, whether that's over its contentious nuclear programme, relations with the West or its domestic situation. Yet it continues to be a country misunderstood by many. Iranians often find themselves having to prove to the rest of the world that theirs is not a monolithic society. To find out more, we speak to Tara Kangarlou, author of "The Heartbeat of Iran".
Meanwhile, hundreds of women rallied in Istanbul over the weekend, calling on the Turkish president to reverse his decision to withdraw from an anti-domestic violence treaty. This comes ahead of a formal exit on July 1. Recep Tayyip Erdogan sparked outrage in March by pulling out of the world's first binding treaty to prevent and combat violence against women, a text known as the Istanbul Convention.
Staying on the topic of women in the Middle East, there are only two female parliament speakers in the region. They are Fawzia Zainal in Bahrain and Rewaz Faiq in Iraqi Kurdistan. The latter was elected to the post back in 2019 in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region. We take a closer look at the woman known for her straight-talking style.
