this is bbc news in central london for international women's day. the un says more than 8 million women and girls will need humanitarian assistance this year. we speak to ukraine's female minister of the economy. five months into the war, more than 30,000 people have been killed in gaza, according to the hamas—run health ministry, and they say more than 70% were women and children. in israel, dozens of women were abducted in the october the 7th attack, and mothers still wait for their loved ones to come home.

we speak to the mayor of freetown in sierra leone, subject of a new bbc documentary. we'll hear from award—winning actress and activist nazanin boniadi on what's next for iran's women—led protests. and iranian female djs use music to defy the islamic republic. hello, i'm azadeh moshiri and welcome to our bbc news special programme on international women's day. i'm standing in front of the millicent fawcett statue, here in parliament square. she was a suffragist in the 20th century, protesting to secure the right to vote for women. it's by the artist gillian wearing and it was made after a campaign

by a feminist writer, caroline criado perez, who wanted to see a woman's statue here in the square. now, of course, what we're about to look at for the next half hour are just some of the issues affecting women today. there's plenty more coverage from the uk and around the world on the bbc news website and app. so let's begin with ukraine. and after more than two years of war in ukraine, the un says more than 8 million women and girls will need humanitarian assistance this year. yet they're vital to ukraine's economy. these pictures are of women training should they be called to war. more than 60,000 women are already serving in the military. all of this is why the un has said it's so important

for women to be represented in the government's decision—making. well, that's exactly what my guest yulia svyrydenko is doing. she is ukraine's first deputy prime minister, and minister of economy. thank you so much for your time. thank you so much for your time. thank you. i thank you so much for your time. thank vom— thank you so much for your time. thank yon-— thank you so much for your time. thank ou. ., ., , ., _ thank you. i want to start by asking ou, when thank you. i want to start by asking you. when you _ thank you. i want to start by asking you. when you see _ thank you. i want to start by asking you, when you see you _ thank you. i want to start by asking you, when you see you are - thank you. i want to start by asking you, when you see you are now - thank you. i want to start by asking i you, when you see you are now more than two years into the war, and you have seen how this has affected women and girls, i wonder, as a woman in cabinet, how that responsibility and that weight of leadership sits with you right now. thank you for the invitation, and of course it is doubly responsible, to be a woman in cabinet, like you said, in the ukrainian government. but i think at the same time it is extremely important, as it's an opportunity for me to strengthen

female representation in all spheres, especially the economy. i think it is also kind of my mission here in the cabinet as a minister to support and launch different types of instruments for supporting women leadership, to combat the gender pay gap and create equal conditions for women and men in work and life balance. i am delighted at the number of women in parliament is increasing. currently there are 21% of women in our parliament and 25% in government. it may seem not so much, but if you look back in 2007, there was only about 8%. it's also very responsible for me because we often meet with women and discuss the importance of female leadership, especially during wartime. and what i see is that due to stereotypes

prevalent in society, women often don't allow themselves to aspire to more. that's why it's my mission to encourage women to take more and to skill up their skills, to train. and i think what we should do right now, we have to inspire women to go into premiership in spite of the war. to that point, in terms of your mission and what you are trying to do, you are also looking at reconstruction for ukraine. and yet many ukrainians who fled our women and girls. i wonder, at some point do you believe these women and girls, especially these women and girls, especially the women who are the backbone of the women who are the backbone of the economy, need to come back in

order to reconstruct ukraine? i think what we should do right now is create the conditions for them to survive and to return back. that's why we should create tools for working places, to restore and rebuild households, to restore their critical infrastructure and incentivise them to come back. of course we need them for recovery and reconstruction. according to the un there are over 6.5 million refugees who are ukrainian worldwide. the majority are young women and children who have settled in the eu. we need them for reconstruction and recovery but we need to correct the terrible conditions to get them returned. ~ ., , terrible conditions to get them returned. ., , ., returned. apologies for interrupting, _ returned. apologies for interrupting, but - returned. apologies for interrupting, but thank| returned. apologies for - interrupting, but thank you so returned. apologies for _ interrupting, but thank you so much for your time, interrupting, but thank you so much foryourtime, and interrupting, but thank you so much for your time, and thank you especially today, on international women's day. especially today, on international

women's dair-— it's impossible to talk about how war has affected women and girls without talking about gaza. following hamas's brutal attack on october the 7th, more than 1,200 people were killed in israel and at least 250 people were abducted. dozens of them were women. and five months into the war, more than 30,000 people have been killed in gaza, according to the healthy ministry, run by hamas. the health ministry says more than 70% were women and children. joining me now is 0rla guerin, who has been covering this war. thank you for your time. good to be with ou. thank you for your time. good to be with you- you _ thank you for your time. good to be with you. you have _ thank you for your time. good to be with you. you have covered - thank you for your time. good to be l with you. you have covered countless wars and conflicts _ with you. you have covered countless wars and conflicts for _ with you. you have covered countless wars and conflicts for the _ with you. you have covered countless wars and conflicts for the bbc. - with you. you have covered countless wars and conflicts for the bbc. i - wars and conflicts for the bbc. i want to know from you, what have you

noticed is particularly significant about the way women and girls are affected in this war?— affected in this war? sadly in this war, as indeed _ affected in this war? sadly in this war, as indeed and _ affected in this war? sadly in this war, as indeed and all _ affected in this war? sadly in this war, as indeed and all the - affected in this war? sadly in this war, as indeed and all the wars l affected in this war? sadly in this war, as indeed and all the wars i | war, as indeed and all the wars i have covered, women and children suffer disproportionately, although they are not part of the military activities on either side. i'm speaking to you from tel aviv, from an area known as hostage square. this is a place where families gather to keep the memory of their loved ones, to keep campaigning for the release of their loved ones who are still being held in gaza. this week we had a un report saying there was convincing information that women being held hostage in gaza, israeli women, are being subjected to rape and sexual torture, and this is ongoing. that report also found there were reasonable grounds to say that rape and gang rape occurred on october the 7th when hamas attacked

israel. since then we have had the brutal israeli assault on gaza and every morning here we get the news that 70, 80, 100 people have been killed overnight. we see the pictures time and again of bodies being dug out of the rubble and in the majority of cases it is women and children being killed. 70% of those killed are women and children. to give you one more figure, two mothers are being killed every hour in gaza. that information comes from the world health organization. given the world health organization. given the role of women in trying to support families, trying to keep their children together and keep them alive, you can understand the devastating impact that the loss of two mothers every hour can have. in addition to that we have soaring rates of acute malnutrition, particularly in the north of gaza where 15% of particularly in the north of gaza where15% of children are now acutely malnourished. it is

important to say that was not the situation before the war. this is the worst deterioration in malnutrition that has ever been experienced worldwide. so you have mothers who are struggling to feed their children, to find water and food, to get access to showers. you have people living in camps where hundreds of people are queueing for hours to use one toilet. there is very little access to medication, very little access to medication, very little access to medication, very little opportunity to go to hospital. pregnant women are having to deliver in tents. if they get to a hospital they are discharged straightaway. we heard a story a few days ago of a palestinian mother who had spent ten years trying to become pregnant, who had gone through three cycles of ivf, and he went to sleep with her twins in her arms and woke up with her twins in her arms and woke up in the middle of the night with the house being destroyed by an israeli air strike and she lost those two precious children that she had waited so long to have. so there

is a dreadful and disproportionate impact on women in this conflict, women, young girls and children. 0rla guerin, thank you for that. there is so much more of 0rla guerin's reporting on the bbc news website, detailed and lengthy reads and we encourage you to go and read those. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. sonita alizadeh was born the same year the taliban first took power in 1996. when she was just a child her family escaped the taliban to iran. her mother tried to sell her off to a forced marriage. but she found her way out through music. when i was in iran, some of my very close friends, after a short time they had to leave school, because girls would be forced into marriage and they would disappear

after a while. and that really gave me so much pain, and it turned me into a very angry person. then i heard eminem rapping. suddenly i felt like that could be me, i could use this type of music to get my anger out. you're live with bbc news. 0ur bbc news special here today on international women's day. next we're turning to sierra leone. the mayor of freetown, yvonne aki—sawyerr, took office to fight climate change. she's also the first directly elected female mayor of freetown

since it became a position voted for by the residents of sierra leone's capital city two decades ago. but working in politics in sierra leone is no easy feat. a bbc documentary by africaeye filmed her campaign for re—election, which was a period marked by violence in the country. here's a moment when ms aki—sawyerr, her daughter and campaign team were filmed in their headquarters on the day of the election, while shots and tear gas were fired at the building. shouting. quickly. guys, get down, get down. my daughter has asthma. can you hear me? we need help.

and shejoins me now on the programme. thank you forjoining me. i want to ask you about what we just saw, the context for the attack and what were you thinking in those moments. goad you thinking in those moments. good morninu. you thinking in those moments. good morning- this— you thinking in those moments. good morning. this was _ you thinking in those moments. good morning. this was the _ you thinking in those moments. (emf. morning. this was the day after the election. there had been a press conference called at the party office and collation was going on of the results, both presidential and mayoral. we were the subject of and gunshot attack. i guess what i was thinking in precise moment wasjust for the safety of everyone there, in addition to my daughter there were a lot of young people on my team. in those moments all you think about is how can we make sure this stops? yeah, it was frightening but

thankfully those on that floor were safe. sadly, a nurse, a retired nurse who was a volunteer with our party was on the ground floor and lost her life. and she was a woman. we do detail that story in the documentary. i also want to ask, you describe that experience as particularly harrowing, and yet you live in a different experience, working in finance here in london. what are your takeaway is about how different it is to operate here in the united kingdom versus going back to serve your country.— to serve your country. clearly, where you _ to serve your country. clearly, where you have _ to serve your country. clearly, where you have situations - to serve your country. clearly, i where you have situations where politics is more... i would use the word intense, where there are situations where the force of the

security forces, their interventions are perhaps less predictable, less contained. it is very different. and certainly i think finance and politics are two different worlds. living in an industrialised, developed country where you are contributing to an already big gdp, as opposed to serving in your own home country, which is developing, where you have the opportunity to directly impact lives through policies and interventions and actions, very different, but i would say the latter is more rewarding. and i mean rewarding from the perspective of you know, you are making a difference to lives in a very direct way, and that counts for a lot. �* , ., .,

a lot. and in terms of that difference, _ a lot. and in terms of that difference, the _ a lot. and in terms of that difference, the un - a lot. and in terms of that difference, the un has. a lot. and in terms of that l difference, the un has said a lot. and in terms of that - difference, the un has said women are affected twice as much by climate change as men are. why did you choose to make that a focus of your work? i you choose to make that a focus of your work?— your work? i grew up in a very natural environment. - your work? i grew up in a very natural environment. my - your work? i grew up in a very. natural environment. my father your work? i grew up in a very - natural environment. my father was a professor at the university and just behind our home we had the botanical gardens so i grew up with a love for nature. when i saw the level of deforestation and environmental degradation and the impact it was having, it really moved me. it moved me to action, and that was coupled with sanitation challenges in the city, that they were experiencing in a really dramatic way in 2016, 2017, at the time i was there post the outbreak of ebola. my initial entry point was one of almost looking into the situation. 0nce point was one of almost looking into the situation. once i started to work on it, i saw the impact on

women. �* ., , work on it, i saw the impact on women. ., , , ., work on it, i saw the impact on women. ~ ., , , ., ., women. apologies, but we have to leave it there. _ women. apologies, but we have to leave it there. but _ women. apologies, but we have to leave it there. but i _ women. apologies, but we have to leave it there. but i want - women. apologies, but we have to leave it there. but i want to - women. apologies, but we have to leave it there. but i want to point i leave it there. but i want to point to the documentary which follows your journey as well as to the documentary which follows yourjourney as well as your to the documentary which follows your journey as well as your climate work. thank you so much for your time and thank you forjoining us on international women's day.- time and thank you forjoining us on international women's day. thank you for havin: international women's day. thank you for having me- — since the islamic revolution, for more than a0 years mixed—gender raves have been banned. but in the late �*90s and early �*00s an underground party scene took shape in tehran. it inspired women like paramida and nesa, who are part of a growing group of female iranian djs inside and outside of iran. bbc 100 women's faranak amidi met with them. i was walking alongside my uncle and my mother, that was my mother's brother, and my mother was a few steps behind us. and i was forced to wear the veil, of course, at the age of 12. and we were stopped by a plainclothes militia who in a very harsh voice and tone

asked myself and my uncle to produce a marriage certificate. he made the assumption that because we were walking side by side, uncle and niece, that we were married, or in a relationship. and a romantic relationship. and i rememberfeeling so violated, as a child. it was something, an experience that was so foreign to me, so degrading. and we were threatened, essentially, to be arrested. my mother had to step forward and say, no, that's my brother and that's my daughter. he still didn't believe any of us. and there was a moment there where i thought my mother would be arrested, i would be taken away. and really that's the fear that women and girls live with every day under the islamic republic. and so, nazanin, taking all of that into account and looking at what's happening this week in fact, the low turnout in the elections, what do you believe is behind that? well, the low, it's a record low since the inception

of the theocracy in �*79. and really what that shows is that the people don't want to be ruled by this gerontocracy, by this autocracy, by this theocracy. they don't want a dictatorship. they want a secular democracy. and they go out onto the streets, bravely defy this regime, and they get beaten, imprisoned, tortured, lashed, forcibly disappeared. i mean, the list goes on and on. and so the only power they have is not to vote. and there is very much still a crackdown to those sorts that was actress and activist nazanin boniadi. you may know her from series like lord of the rings and homeland. but many iranians know for her activism, as a sydney

peace prize laureate and an ambassador for amnesty international. she was talking about women in the wake of women's led protests. stay with us here on bbc news. mixed gender raves and music in iran are banned, and women don't have an outlook for their work if they are a dj but some go abroad to escape the underground rave scene in iran. bbc 100 women's faranak amidi met with them. translation: because in iran most of the things we are interested - in are either taboo or banned, when we start doing those things, those acts become acts of protest. anyone like me who has grown up in iran knows that consuming alcohol, mingling and dancing

with the opposite sex, and general partying can get you in serious trouble. you can get fined, jailed or even lashed. so wanting to be a techno or house dj, especially if you're a woman, wouldn't be easy. translation: the first time i went to a party outside of tehran. - i was looking at the dj all the time and thinking to myself, i would like to have that same job. nesa azadikhah is one of the first female djs in iran. she built her career djing at underground raves in tehran in a scene that women weren't always welcomed. translation: | remember. reactions weren't that great. people looked at me as if there was something wrong with me. some men even thought because of what i was doing they could easily touch or kiss me. thousands of miles away

from iran's restrictions, the dance music industry is still very much male dominated. based on the international music summit's 2023 report, women make up only 15% of the top 100 dj bookings at festivals and clubs globally. paramida is an iranian—german dj. she lives in berlin and is a resident dj at one of the most famous clubs in the world. as a woman you get judged twice. first, your appearance, and then your skills. for her, djing is more thanjust playing music. the fact that i'm able to do what is forbidden for so many women in iran makes me actually a living protest. all these restrictions led to nesa deciding to leave iran. she is now in france and plays across europe. translation: playing outside iran for me is liberating. _ i feel relaxed and don't worry about being arrested or the event getting cancelled.

but for me, nothing beats the vibe of iran's underground parties. and for paramida, there's still one place she hasn't played yet. one of my biggest dreams is being able to go back to tehran or iran, and even do a love on the rocks night there. how amazing would that be? faranak amidi, bbc news. events a re events are happening for international women's day around the world, including protests. i want to bring you some live pictures from rome where women are marching for women's rights. there are plenty more other events and we will show them on the news channel as well as our streaming channel, so please do check out iplayer for more events

around the world. but back here in parliament square, i'm joined by community dancers, a group called impact dance, who say they are working towards art for social change. thank you forjoining us. thank you for your time today. we will be showing some of your performance later this afternoon. why is it that you say art for social change, what are you trying to achieve?— to achieve? what we are trying to achieve is that _ to achieve? what we are trying to achieve is that a _ to achieve? what we are trying to achieve is that a lot _ to achieve? what we are trying to achieve is that a lot of _ to achieve? what we are trying to achieve is that a lot of young - achieve is that a lot of young people love to dance, but we use dance to capture their imagination but actually it's all about leadership, life skills and empowerment in safe spaces. it's really important we work with 11—19 —year—olds to allow them to have alternative ways of being educated, alternative ways of being educated, alternative ways of being educated, alternative ways of being the best they can be. these guys are testament to that journey for the

last 28 years. testament to that “ourney for the last 28 years.— testament to that “ourney for the last 28 years. what empowers you about being _ last 28 years. what empowers you about being part — last 28 years. what empowers you about being part of— last 28 years. what empowers you about being part of impact - last 28 years. what empowers you about being part of impact dance? impact dance gives young people like myseif _ impact dance gives young people like myself the tools to express ourselves in a positive way. it provides _ ourselves in a positive way. it provides a _ ourselves in a positive way. it provides a multitude of opportunities to put smiles on pe0pie's— opportunities to put smiles on people's faces and our faces too. what _ people's faces and our faces too. what are — people's faces and our faces too. what are your favourite kinds of dancing and music? i what are your favourite kinds of dancing and music?— dancing and music? i think my favourite kinds _ dancing and music? i think my favourite kinds of _ dancing and music? i think my favourite kinds of dancing - dancing and music? i think my favourite kinds of dancing are | favourite kinds of dancing are hip-hon. _ favourite kinds of dancing are hip-hon. which— favourite kinds of dancing are hip—hop, which we _ favourite kinds of dancing are hip—hop, which we do - favourite kinds of dancing are hip—hop, which we do a - favourite kinds of dancing are hip—hop, which we do a lot i favourite kinds of dancing are i hip—hop, which we do a lot of. favourite kinds of dancing are - hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great _ hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to— hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to do— hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to do it _ hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to do it here _ hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to do it here because - hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to do it here because it's- hip—hop, which we do a lot of. it's great to do it here because it's a i great to do it here because it's a safe _ great to do it here because it's a safe space, _ great to do it here because it's a safe space, it— great to do it here because it's a safe space, it empowers- great to do it here because it's a safe space, it empowers us- great to do it here because it's a safe space, it empowers us in. great to do it here because it's a. safe space, it empowers us in our everyday— safe space, it empowers us in our everyday lives _ safe space, it empowers us in our everyday lives and _ safe space, it empowers us in our everyday lives and it's _ safe space, it empowers us in our everyday lives and it's a _ safe space, it empowers us in our everyday lives and it's a great - everyday lives and it's a great environment. _ everyday lives and it's a great environment.— everyday lives and it's a great environment. ~ , ., everyday lives and it's a great environment. ., environment. when did you start all this and why? _ environment. when did you start all this and why? i _ environment. when did you start all this and why? i started _ environment. when did you start all this and why? i started this - environment. when did you start all this and why? i started this in - this and why? i started this in 1995. i this and why? i started this in 1995- i got — this and why? i started this in 1995- i got a _ this and why? i started this in 1995. i got a biochemistry - this and why? i started this in - 1995. i got a biochemistry degree but i didn't think science was my way forward. i thought working with people and empowering young people, i didn't have support in the arts when i was young so it was important to have that legacy. the legacy of serving 28 years is serving multitudes of people, notjust

becoming dancers but business owners, it consultants, top models, etc. it's notjust about moulding people to be dancers, but using the medium of dance to teach people life skills and empowerment so they can be the best they can be moving forward. ~ . ~ be the best they can be moving forward. ~ ., ~ ., , ., forward. what kind of hopes and dreams do _ forward. what kind of hopes and dreams do you _ forward. what kind of hopes and dreams do you have, _ forward. what kind of hopes and dreams do you have, do - forward. what kind of hopes and dreams do you have, do you - forward. what kind of hopes and. dreams do you have, do you want forward. what kind of hopes and - dreams do you have, do you want to be dancers, it consultants? i’m dreams do you have, do you want to be dancers, it consultants?- be dancers, it consultants? i'm not sure et. be dancers, it consultants? i'm not sure yet- i'm _ be dancers, it consultants? i'm not sure yet. i'm thinking _ be dancers, it consultants? i'm not sure yet. i'm thinking maybe - sure yet. i'm thinking maybe immigration lawyer, something to do with helping people get to safe places — with helping people get to safe places |— with helping people get to safe laces. ~ ., ., ., places. i think i want to do something _ places. i think i want to do something along _ places. i think i want to do something along the - places. i think i want to do something along the lines| places. i think i want to do i something along the lines of places. i think i want to do - something along the lines of dance, but anything — something along the lines of dance, but anything creative, _ something along the lines of dance, but anything creative, just - but anything creative, just experimenting _ but anything creative, just experimenting with - but anything creative, justi experimenting with identity but anything creative, just - experimenting with identity in the world _ experimenting with identity in the world. . ~' experimenting with identity in the world. ., ~ ., experimenting with identity in the world. ., ~' ., �* world. thank you for your time. and thank ou world. thank you for your time. and thank you to — world. thank you for your time. and thank you to everyone _ world. thank you for your time. and thank you to everyone back - world. thank you for your time. and thank you to everyone back there, i thank you to everyone back there, impact dancejoining us in parliament square. thank you for your time. that's all from us here in parliament square. thank you for your time,

in parliament square. thank you for yourtime, and in parliament square. thank you for your time, and there is so much more coverage of international women's day throughout the day on our bbc news channel, website, news app, streaming, wherever you get your news we are there, so keep watching for events from around the world. that's all from me, thank you so much.

live from london, this is bbc news. breaking news, the foreign secretary lord cameron says alongside the us, a maritime corridor will be opened to deliver aid directly to gaza. president biden gives his state of the union address and makes an impassioned pitch for a second term whilst taking swipes at his rival donald trump. here's the simple truth. you can't love your country only when you win! cheering. the nigerian army is searching for gunmen who seized more than 280 schoolchildren. and coming up, it's international women's day — a time to reflect on the achievements of women and progress towards gender equality.