Helene Conway-Mouret

French Senate, France

Title: Women as victims and actors in conflicts: a dual reality

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Biography

Abstract

War is still seen as a “man's business”, and women are often invisible.Few studies are carried out on the impact of armed conflict on females, despitethe fact that they represent a particularly vulnerable but resilient targetgroup and play an increasingly active role in combat.

Civilian women: invisible but resilient victims

The human toll in armed conflicts is traditionally based on the numberof casualties on the battlefields, whose majority are men. It overlooks theother victims who are women.

First and foremost, they are the primary victims of the bombardment ofcivilian areas, but also of sexual violence used as a weapon of war, asdemonstrated by the attack on October 7. They are also victims of variousexplosive devices.

Secondly, they suffer the collateral effect of the upheaval in socialand family structures caused by the absence or death of men. This restructuringof roles is particularly visible in Ukraine. It is just as prevalent in theGaza Strip, although less documented due to the denial of access to theterritory. 

Women combatants: from exception to normality

Women are not just passive victims of conflict.

In the West, the feminization of armies is relatively recent but stilllimited. However, in war zones, taking up arms is a matter of survival.Kurdish women, for example, were pioneers in the empowerment of the Rojavaregion. Ukrainian women have seen their role evolve since the war in theDonbass.

It is essential to understand and integrate these realities to bettermeet the needs of women in conflict zones, while supporting their role inpost-conflict transformation.