Two prominent gender and human rights defenders, Dr Isatou Touray and Amie Bojang Sissoho were arrested and detained on Monday 11 October 2010 by Gambian security forces, kept in police custody at the Banjul Police station, and sent to jail on Tuesday 12 October 2010.

A three-day, capacity-building training on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) for 30 media practitioners across the Gambia got underway in Banjul. Organized by The Gambia Committee on Traditional Practices affecting The Health of Women and Children ((Gamcotrap), with the support of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) joint programme to accelerate the stoppage of FGM, the training is meant to build the capacity of the participants for effective and progressive reporting on the harmful traditional practices and domestic violence.

A court in Gambia has rejected the appeal of an opposition politician who was jailed for using a megaphone at a rally without permission, a case that has drawn harsh criticism from foreign donors. The jailing of Femi Peters, campaign manager of the main opposition UDP party, led to the United States and former colonial power Britain speaking out over concerns about human rights in Gambia, moves which drew an angry rebuke from President Yahya Jammeh who accused them of backing the opposition.

Since the 1994 coup d’état that saw President Yahya Jammeh rise to power, the Gambian media has been forced to work under repressive and restrictive conditions. The disappearance of editors and journalists, destruction of property and threat of imprisonment and harm by Jammeh’s National Intelligence Agency officers mean Gambian media outlets must either praise the ruling party or close their doors. Alagi Yorro Jallow, once an editor of a now closed private Gambian publication, discusses the Gambian government crackdown on the media and regulations under which a Gambian journalist must work.

The country representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in The Gambia, Dr. Thomas Sukwa, said the vaccination campaign for the Swine Flu, A(H1N1), though not yet reported in the country, targets only 10 per cent of the nation's population.The week-long, nation-wide vaccination campaign, spearheaded by the Ministry of Heath and Social Welfare, in collaboration with the WHO office in Banjul, started Wednesday.

Released in response to Gambia’s ‘Freedom Day’ on Thursday 22 July, this joint statement from civil society organisations aims to draw attention to Gambian President Yahya Jammeh’s ‘appalling human rights record’. The statement underlines that: 'Freedom remains an illusion for most Gambians, who live in fear of arbitrary arrest, torture, incommunicado detention, unfair trials, rape, disappearance and extrajudicial executions.'

Amnesty International is calling on the Gambian government to end its widespread use of arbitrary detentions and torture as activists worldwide stage protests against the authorities' appalling human rights record on 22 July, the country's national holiday known as "Freedom Day".

The High Court in the Gambian capital Banjul passed death sentence on a former head of the country's military. Former Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) Lt. General Lang Tombong Tamba was sentenced on two counts with seven co-accused, including a former Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and a Lebanese born businessman.

The International Press Institute (IPI) has expressed grave concern over the recent death threat against Gambian journalist, Abdoulie John, and called for an immediate and thorough investigation into the matter. "We are gravely concerned about reports of threats against Gambian journalist Ab doulie John," said IPI Press Freedom Manager Anthony Mills, adding: "particularly since journalists in Gambia operate under fear of death, harassment and physical harm.

Gambian opposition People's Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS), has proposed the holding of primaries as a way of resolving the thorny issue of selecting a presidential flag-bearer for a united opposition front ahead of the tiny West African nation’s polls. The proposal followed PDOIS's recent congress during which party supporters and executive members adopted 'Agenda 2011', a blueprint spelling out strategies, plans and theories aimed at effecting democratic change in the Gambia.

Experts at the 47th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and People's Rights (ACHPR), which ended Thursday in Banjul, the Gambian capital, have said that the Commission's greatest handicap was its inability to perform its mandate of protecting human rights in Africa. Reine Alapini-Gansou, Chairperson of the Commission, stated that at the Banjul session, participants adopted new rules which seek to enhance human rights services in such a way that they would complement the activities of the African Court on Human and People's Rights.

The Gambian government has given reasons why investigation into the murder of journalist Deyda Hydara has not been concluded. According to the Interior Minister, Ousman Sonko, two key witnesses in the case are outside the government jurisdiction and attempts to reach them have been unsuccessful.

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has signed a grant agreement of US$8 million with the Republic of The Gambia to improve the production and marketability of livestock and horticulture products, specifically targeting rural women and youth nationwide.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that Gambian authorities had carried out satisfactory economic policies that have contributed to robust economic growth and low inflation. But it warned that Gambia still remained at high risk of debt distress even after extensive debt relief.

The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has released a trial observation report, The Gambia: Freedom of Expression on Trial, which raises concerns with respect to the Gambia’s compliance with fair trial standards and the application of criminal law to seven journalists who legitimately and peacefully exercised their right to freedom of expression.

Gambia's Assistant Superintendent of Police Yahya Fadera has declared there will be zero tolerance for gender-based violence, in particular rape and sexual assault against women and girls, warning that perpetrators will have no place to hide.

Gambian president, Yahya Jammeh, is once again on the offensive against homosexuality, describing the practice as an act of 'indecency' which has no place in the country's military.

GAMCOTRAP, an NGO that promotes women's social, political, economic and cultural rights and focuses on sexual and reproductive health rights has marked the symbolic abandonment of the Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) practice.

Gambia women rights group, The Gambia Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children (GAMCOTRAP) will honour ex-circumcisers and their communities at the Basse Stadium in the Upper River Region.

Experts, civil society organizations and other key stakeholders in women's empowerment and gender equality issues have agreed to improve the lives of African women, a UNECA press lease has said.