News, 2/23/26

[Angeline Binick]

I.      GLOBAL NEWS

II.     REGIONAL NEWS

III.    FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION

IV.    CHILD MARRIAGE

V.     POLICY / LEGISLATION

VI.    SEX TRAFFICKING

VII.   CLERGY ABUSE

VIII.  SEXUAL ABUSE BY PROFESSIONALS

IX.    ONLINE ABUSE

 

 

 

 

 

GLOBAL NEWS

UN report exposes torture, rape in Southeast Asia’s multi-billion-dollar scam centres
https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/02/1167012

REGIONAL NEWS

Middletown man facing up to 120 years for raping spa workers at gunpoint: DA
https://local21news.com/news/local/middletown-man-facing-up-to-120-years-for-raping-spa-workers-at-gunpoint-da

FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION

Gambians share pain with FGM ban in balance

(Trigger warning)

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20260220-everything-was-removed-gambians-share-pain-with-fgm-ban-in-balance

CHILD MARRIAGE

How football is helping girls fight against forced marriage
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpv8r34mn0po 

POLICY / LEGISLATION

Pennsylvania: Lawmaker seeks NDA ban to empower workplace harassment victims
https://www.wtaj.com/news/regional-news/pa-lawmaker-seeks-nda-ban-to-empower-workplace-harassment-victims/

A Missouri bill named for Taylor Swift targets deepfakes and AI-generated sexual content
https://www.kcur.org/politics-elections-and-government/2026-02-22/missouri-taylor-swift-deepfakes-ai-images-sexual-content

SEX TRAFFICKING

Deepak Chopra's close friendship with Jeffrey Epstein revealed in the Epstein files

(Video)

https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/20/politics/video/deepak-chopra-jeffrey-epstein-files-friendship-revealed-lee-digvid

Ghislaine Maxwell fights release of more Epstein documents, calling disclosure law unconstitutional
https://apnews.com/article/jeffrey-epstein-ghislaine-maxwell-b9890fa6fa230fa649c8a847c76d97da

Former UK ambassador Mandelson arrested after Epstein revelations
https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/times-newspaper-says-peter-mandelson-led-away-his-home-by-police-2026-02-23/

Billionaire Les Wexner says he was ‘duped’ by adviser Jeffrey Epstein, ‘a world-class con man’
https://apnews.com/article/epstein-wexner-congress-subpoena-733833f6d648c09e6b3473eb1cd4009d

Texas: Houston non-profit builds emergency safe home for sex trafficking victims leading up to FIFA World Cup 2026
https://www.fox26houston.com/news/houston-trafficking-safe-house-place-before-world-cup-2026

Alaska: Senator's chief of staff charged with sex trafficking, child exploitation, and coercion
https://local12.com/news/nation-world/sex-trafficking-chief-staff-senator-child-exploitation-porn-pornography-coercion-social-media-snapchat-alaska-congress-big-daddy-pedo-pedophile-drug-alcohol-messages-message-exploitation-exploit-valdez

Maryland hotels accused of enabling sex trafficking in lawsuit spanning 2013-2016

https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/maryland-hotels-accused-enabling-sex-trafficking-lawsuit

CLERGY ABUSE

Bankrupt California Friars Agree to $20 Million Settlement with Survivors
https://www.independent.com/2026/02/12/bankrupt-california-friars-agree-to-20-million-settlement-with-survivors/

SEXUAL ABUSE BY PROFESSIONALS

California: LAUSD borrowing $250 million to settle sex abuse claims — on top of earlier half billion

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-02-21/lausd-borrowing-250-million-to-settle-sex-abuse-claims-on-top-of-earlier-half-billion

Australia: Three-year wait for national criminal history checker makes parents 'sick'

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-23/working-with-children-check-parents-sick/106370632

ONLINE ABUSE

California girl targeted by Pennsylvania man linked to self-harm ideology

(Trigger warning)

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/california-girl-targeted-pennsylvania-man-linked-self-harm-ideology-rcna260305

Meta users survey found 19% of young teens on Instagram report seeing unwanted nude images
https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/meta-survey-found-19-young-teen-instagram-users-saw-unwanted-nude-or-sexual-2026-02-23/