News, 2/16/26

[Angeline Binick]

I.     GLOBAL NEWS

II.    POLICY / LEGISLATION

III.   SEX TRAFFICKING

IV.   ARMED CONFLICT

V.    ADVOCACY

VI.   CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE MATERIAL

VII.  ONLINE ABUSE

VIII. CASE STORIES

 

 

 

 

 

GLOBAL NEWS

France: Gisèle Pelicot plans to meet ex-husband in prison for answers on other allegations
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/feb/14/gisele-pelicot-ex-husband-dominique-abuse

Man in northern Sweden suspected of selling sex with his wife to at least 120 men
https://apnews.com/article/sexual-abuse-prostitution-sweden-procurement-9b964405d77b2fba9f7ecfd29947d21d

Australia: Former ACT commissioner Vanessa Turnbull-Roberts accuses public servant of sexual assault
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-17/vanessa-turnbull-roberts-alleges-sexual-assault/106352482

POLICY / LEGISLATION

New York: New bill aims to end statute of limitations for sex abuse, trafficking survivors
https://13wham.com/news/local/schumer-backs-bill-to-expand-federal-time-limits-for-sex-abuse-trafficking-survivors-virginias-law-jeffrey-epstein-files-doj

SEX TRAFFICKING

New Mexico approves comprehensive probe of Epstein’s Zorro Ranch
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/new-mexico-approves-comprehensive-probe-epsteins-zorro-ranch-2026-02-17/

How Jeffrey Epstein used the glamour of the Nobel Peace Prize to entice his global network of elites
https://apnews.com/article/epstein-nobel-jagland-branson-summers-bannon-trump-a947bbf2bd307658014862d01517d21f

US Commerce Secretary admits Epstein island lunch as pressure mounts to resign

https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20260210-us-commerce-secretary-admits-epstein-island-lunch

LA Olympics leader Wasserman will sell talent agency in wake of Epstein emails discovery
https://apnews.com/article/jeffrey-epstein-casey-wasserman-ghislaine-maxwell-olympics-02bc53aa1b6fa6fecac47e3a31a29ef1

UK: Jess Phillips calls for Epstein files to be catalyst for long-term legislative change
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/feb/15/jess-phillips-calls-for-epstein-files-to-be-catalyst-for-long-term-legislative-change

French prosecutors announce special team to analyze Epstein files

https://www.france24.com/en/france/20260214-frech-prosecutors-announce-special-team-to-analyse-epstein-files

French police raid Paris's Arab World Institute in Epstein-linked probe into Jack Lang

https://www.france24.com/en/france/20260216-french-police-raid-paris-s-arab-world-institute-in-epstein-linked-probe-into-jack-lang

ARMED CONFLICT

At least 6,000 killed over 3 days during RSF attack on Sudan’s el-Fasher, UN says
https://apnews.com/article/sudan-rsf-darfur-fasher-un-report-6399bc86352cecd459dd5dd77e5e11f2

ADVOCACY

Wisconsin, Minnesota officials join march for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives
https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/16/wisconsin-minnesota-officials-join-march-for-missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-and-relatives/

CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE MATERIAL

Grok faces more scrutiny over deepfakes as Irish regulator opens EU privacy investigation
https://apnews.com/article/ireland-grok-deepfakes-eu-privacy-9d3d096a1f4dc0baddde3d5d91e050b7

ONLINE ABUSE

‘This shouldn’t be normal’: Developers speak out about bigotry on Steam, the world’s biggest PC gaming storefront
https://www.theguardian.com/games/2026/feb/16/bigotry-steam-pc-moderation-developers-speak-out

CASE STORIES

Sexual assaults on airplanes are up, and likely underreported, a CBS News investigation finds

(Trigger warning)

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/sexual-assaults-on-airplanes-cbs-news-investigation/