The United Nations is canceling the Gaza marathon because the Islamist Hamas government has bowed to pressure from fundamentalists and is refusing to allow women to run.  That’s quite a change from past years when Hamas apparently had no problems with it, going as far to provide security for the runners.

But Islamic conservatives have apparently been hammering Hamas with complaints about both genders freely mixing in public, especially at schools and sporting events.  Hamas now says “local traditions” must be observed.

The length of Gaza is almost perfectly tailored for a Marathon.  The UN Relief and Works Agency was planning to use the marathon to raise money to run summer camps for Palestinian children.