Figures for England and Wales prompt calls for more rigorous police investigations of cases

Only 3% of suicides related to domestic abuse in England and Wales in the past five years have resulted in any sort of prosecution, figures show.

Between 2020 and 2025, 553 people took their own lives after suspected abuse in an intimate relationship, but only 17 posthumous charges were brought.

In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org

The 1994 genocide in Rwanda was one of the most intimate and large-scale acts of violence of the 20th century. In just 100 days, between 800,000 and one million people were killed, mainly Tutsis but also Hutus. Perpetrators were neighbors, teachers, church leaders, even family members, who attacked face-to-face with machetes, clubs, and spears.

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MALAYSIA: In some parts of the world, this man would be called a Romeo for wooing as many as nine wives, but in Malaysia, some are calling him, for some reason, a Ted Bundy after his arrest for causing a miscarriage.

The man, 43-year-old Rosmaini Abd. Raof has allegedly beaten his pregnant wife with a clothes hanger, rubber hose, curtain rod, and broom following a domestic dispute.

This caused the 39‑year‑old victim, a hospital staff member who was 12 weeks pregnant, to miscarry. She received treatment at Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital (HSAH) and suffered injuries to her body and face.

According to various news reports, the man has been married nine times and was released on bail while appealing a 10-year jail sentence for yet another case in which he attacked one of his many spouses.

Of particular relevance is that all his wives, current or former, are civil servants.

Kedah police chief Adzli Abu Shah said at a press conference that the suspect has more than one wife.

“The suspect is believed to currently have three wives and has been married nine times.”

“He would seek partners with stable jobs, as he himself does not have steady employment,” Bernama reported.

The suspect has 11 children and four previous criminal records involving assault, voluntarily causing hurt, concealing a birth and criminal intimidation, the police said.

After the recent incident, the suspect took off and went into hiding. He is now remanded for seven days in Kedah on Wednesday after police arrested him at a homestay in Alor Setar.

The police also confirmed that he is the same perpetrator in the case involving then-pregnant ex-wife, Jahidah Nordin, in Larkin, Johor Bahru, in May 2021. This piece of information shocked many in Malaysia.

People are also asking how this man could be free, given last week’s incident.

The man was convicted of injuring Jahidah, who has remained in a coma until today, but his 10‑year prison sentence was postponed pending appeal.

Police said last week’s case had been reclassified as voluntarily causing grievous hurt, an offence that carries a maximum punishment of 20 years’ imprisonment, a fine or caning.

Public reaction online has been largely critical, with many expressing shock over the case.

Some users suggested the suspect appeared to target women with stable jobs, pointing to a pattern in his relationships.

“He definitely has a type… That’s why he chose victims with government jobs,” one commenter wrote.

Others were baffled by the number of marriages and children involved.

“An unemployed, violent man managed to marry multiple women and father 11 children. Who should be held accountable for this?” another said.

There were also questions about how the suspect remained free despite a prior conviction.

“How is he still not in jail?” one user asked, raising concerns about enforcement and accountability.

This article (Man with multiple marriages faces jail after alleged assault on pregnant wife) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.

Police warn of violent pornography and ‘toxic’ influencers as suicides outstrip homicides for third year running

The first teenage girl has been identified as having been driven to kill herself after domestic violence, as police chiefs blamed violent pornography and “toxic” influencers for being behind a rise in teen abuse.

Suicides after domestic abuse have outstripped homicides for the third year running, according to the Domestic Homicide Project, which records deaths in England and Wales after domestic abuse.

SINGAPORE: A disturbing case unfolded at an HDB block, where a son refused to let his elderly father into their home, forcing the 74-year-old man to sleep downstairs for months.

The 40-year-old son is now facing four charges, including intentional assault and violence. He pleaded guilty to two charges, with the remaining taken into consideration, and was sentenced to 13 weeks’ jail.

Case details

According to Shin Min Daily News, the HDB flat was owned by the suspect’s parents, but the son would only allow his father to return home if he followed certain conditions.

At one point, the elderly man was allowed back into the flat only after buying breakfast for his son. Once inside, the son would confiscate his phone, preventing him from contacting anyone.

The mother was also reportedly not allowed to return home and had to stay with their daughter. However, the daughter’s home was too small to accommodate the father.

As a result, the elderly man spent nights sleeping downstairs at the HDB block. Some neighbours, who noticed his situation, gave him money for food.

One 79-year-old resident said he had often seen the man sitting or sleeping downstairs, though many did not know the full details at the time.

On Feb 21, 2026, the father tried once again to return home. However, his son demanded that he buy a testosterone patch first. When the elderly man refused, the two got into an argument.

The son then kicked his father three times. Despite the pain, the elderly man begged for mercy, but the son continued to punch him in the arms.

Two days later, on Feb 23, the son made further demands and even threatened to burn the house. During another confrontation, he punched his father twice in the left eye.

Despite the repeated assaults, the elderly man did not seek medical attention.

Following the incidents, the son was arrested and has since been remanded.

Other related news 

In another story involving elderly residents in HDB estates, a resident shared a video of a group of aunties gathering weekly at the void deck. The women were seen dancing to loud music, drawing attention from neighbours in the otherwise quiet block.

Read more about the story here.

This article (Father forced to sleep outside HDB block for months, son jailed for assault) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.

On Monday, El Salvador’s Attorney General announced the beginning of a mass trial of 486 alleged members of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang, who are accused of more than 47,000 crimes committed between 2012 and 2022.

Among the defendants, 413 are already detained in different penitentiary centers, while 73 have arrest warrants issued against them. 

The Attorney General said that 22 historical kingpins of the Ranfla, MS-13’s top leadership structure, will be prosecuted in the trial, along with 212 other Ranfla members and 152 program coordinators. Charges include aggravated homicide, disappearance of persons, extortion, arms trafficking, and femicide.

MS-13 was founded in Los Angeles as a street gang in the 1980s by Salvadoran refugees who fled the civil war. It spread to Central America when many of its members were deported to their home countries during the 1990s and has been designated as a terrorist organization both by El Salvador and the U.S.

The trial takes place amid El Salvador’s state of emergency, which President Nayib Bukele declared in March 2022 under Article 29 of the country’s Constitution. Under the emergency act, security forces have broader powers to arrest and detain suspects, while certain constitutional protections have been suspended.  

Once among the most violent countries in the world, El Salvador has managed to reduce its murder rate to 1.3 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the lowest in the whole continent. 

More than 91,000 suspected gang members have been arrested since the implementation of the state of emergency, according to the government.

These measures have drawn criticism from several human rights organizations, which accuse Bukele’s government of rights violations and abuses.

In a statement published on April 21, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights expressed concerns that the prolonged state of emergency “suspends the rights to a legal defense and to the inviolability of communications, and also extends administrative detention timelines.”
In a report published last March, Salvadoran rights group Cristosal said that critics of the government, including journalists, activists, and opposition figures, have faced increasing criminalization since 2021.

Despite the critics, the latest data published by CID Gallup show that Nayib Bukele has reached a 94% approval rating, the highest level since he came into power in 2019.

Featured image description: MS-13 gang members sat through a mass trial on April 20.

Featured image credit: El Salvador Attorney General’s Office.

The post El Salvador begins mass trial for 486 suspected MS-13 members appeared first on Latin America Reports.

Experts say attacks, also carried out by settlers, are leading girls to quit school and enter early marriages

Israeli soldiers and settlers are using gendered violence and sexual assault and harassment to force Palestinians from their homes in the occupied West Bank, human rights and legal experts say.

Palestinian women, men and children have reported attacks, forced nudity, invasive and painful body cavity searches, Israelis exposing their genitals, including to minors, and threats of sexual violence.