Editor’s Note
The author of this piece has long focused on the status of women in the Middle East and brings her expertise to bear in highlighting the extraordinary challenges faced – and coping methods used — by Afghan and Gazan women as victims of chronic conflict.
By Barbara Slavin, Distinguished Fellow, Middle East Perspectives
Women in conflict zones navigate compounded adversities of gender-based violence, restricted access to education and health services, and displacement.
War affects men and women differently due to their societal roles and expectations. Both Afghanistan and Gaza have experienced sharp declines in the well-being of women and girls as a result of chronic conflict.
In Afghanistan, before the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, there was significant, if fragile, progress. According to UNICEF, female literacy rates were about 30% in 2018. The Afghan government in 2020 said women constituted about 22% of the workforce compared to virtually zero under previous Taliban rule from 1996-2001. However, with the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and the Taliban’s resurgence, there are reports of drastic regression, with women barred from employment outside the home and education beyond primary school.
The situation in Gaza, impacted by an Israeli blockade and recurrent conflict, presents a different set of challenges. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, three years before the devastating war that erupted on Oct. 7, 2023, following the Hamas attack on Israel, the unemployment rate for women in Gaza was more than 60%. Since the outbreak of war, much of Gaza has been destroyed, and the economy has collapsed. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has highlighted the psychological as well as physical toll on the population, especially women and children. Some 20,000 of the 35,000 Palestinians killed since Oct. 7 are women and children, and the survivors suffer from trauma and other mental health issues.
Women in both Afghanistan and Gaza also have suffered from GBV, restricted access to resources, and exclusion from public participation. Yet, women have devised innovative strategies to try to counteract their marginalization in both areas.
In Afghanistan, underground educational networks and economic ventures have resurged. These include clandestine schools and home-based businesses, which provide essential services and symbolize resistance against an oppressive regime. These secret endeavors challenge the status quo and ensure the continuity of learning and financial involvement for women.
In 2022, the U.S. State Department unveiled a U.S.-Afghan Consultative Mechanism that brings together Afghan women’s groups and outside scholars and civil society leaders to inform U.S. policy and find ways of supporting Afghan women. This platform aims to foster a space where Afghan women can continue to contribute to civil society despite their challenging circumstances. Such initiatives are crucial as they address immediate needs and empower women as key stakeholders in peace processes, aligning with global efforts to support women-led initiatives in conflict zones.
FEMENA is another advocacy organization supporting women’s rights across the Middle East and North Africa. FEMENA provides resources, conducts advocacy, and fosters networks to enhance women’s influence on policy and societal norms. Linking FEMENA’s efforts with Afghan organizations could offer effective strategies for enhancing women’s roles under oppressive regimes.
Despite the difficulty of covering Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, journalists have found inspiring stories.
Shukriya, a Kabul beautician interviewed by the New York Times, uses her salon for more than haircutting. It’s a covert hub for education and discussion, offering women a rare safe space. Her earnings exceed her husband’s, highlighting the salon’s vital role in supporting the family as well as a refuge from stress.
Women have faced fewer restrictions in Palestinian civil society. Beginning in 1978, the Palestinian women’s movement aimed to create gender equality in the West Bank and Gaza while promoting democratic civil society. Women’s organizations have provided vocational training, literacy education, and health information, even if they remain marginalized in broader political contexts.
In Gaza, community resilience has manifested through initiatives like community kitchens, which struggle to avert famine during the current conflict.
Sammer Abu Safiya,who lives in Gaza, highlighted the difficulties women face in accessing necessities. She told The Voices of Palestinian Women:“The war has a negative effect on all Palestinians and especially the women. Around 63 women get killed every day, and 37 women get injured every day. A lot of children lose their mothers and the life they were used to.”
As of March 30, 2024, nearly 5,000 children had been orphaned, Abu Safiya said.
Women also struggle to access hygiene products and many are experiencing difficulty becoming pregnant as well as complications in childbirth.
“The situation is quite challenging as nobody can access their land, and there is no production line. Everything we get is through humanitarian assistance,” Abu Saifya said. Women face the hardships of forced displacement and need to cook and care for their families in an environment where they cannot find clean water, bathrooms, or cooking fuel.
The Jerusalem Center for Women, a non-governmental organization founded in 1994 in East Jerusalem, offers resources and advocates for women’s rights within families and society. These include educational workshops and training programs to build capacity and knowledge for active public participation, along with legal assistance and advocacy to help women facing gender-based violence or discrimination. Additionally, the center provides psychological support to help women cope with trauma and mental health challenges. It also promotes community engagement and mobilization to strengthen women’s influence in decision-making processes and facilitates networking and coalition building to amplify their voices and extend their impact.
Amal Syam, general manager of the Women’s Affairs Center of the Palestinian National Authority, told the UN that 83 percent of women’s organizations in the Gaza Strip are still operational despite Israeli bombardment, focusing mainly on emergency response but also providing psychological support and legal counseling, cash assistance, hygiene, and dignity kits. The kits include buckets with lids to store clean water. They also come with soap and laundry detergent to help families maintain good hygiene practices and include menstrual hygiene products such as reusable and disposable pads, and multipurpose cloths.
Palestinian women’s groups have also historically pushed for legal reform and gender equality, including restrictions on child marriage, prevention of polygamy, and greater child custody rights.
A Comprehensive Approach to Women’s Needs
Supporting women in conflict and post-conflict societies requires a comprehensive approach that integrates international advocacy, education, economic empowerment, mental health support, and inclusive peace processes.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) emphasizes several key actions to help end violence against women and girls, including supporting survivors and advocating for their rights, challenging harmful gender norms, educating the next generation, and providing economic empowerment.
There is an urgent need for more international support for women-led initiatives in conflict zones. Policies should address immediate needs and empower women as key stakeholders in peace processes. Conflict zones demand special attention to the gendered aspects of war so that women’s voices are not marginalized but actively included in peacebuilding and recovery efforts.
Maryam Rezaei Zadeh is a Faculty Assistant and Mentor for Persian House, part of the Persian Capstone year-long program at the Persian Flagship Program, University of Maryland, and a contributor to the Middle East Perspectives program at the Stimson Center. Her research and academic interests lie at the intersection of international security and relations, focusing on empowering and advocating for women’s and marginalized groups’ rights in the Middle East.
Afghan and Gazan Narratives Show Women’s Resilience in Conflict Zones
By Maryam Rezaei Zadeh
Middle East & North Africa
Editor’s Note
The author of this piece has long focused on the status of women in the Middle East and brings her expertise to bear in highlighting the extraordinary challenges faced – and coping methods used — by Afghan and Gazan women as victims of chronic conflict.
By Barbara Slavin, Distinguished Fellow, Middle East Perspectives
Women in conflict zones navigate compounded adversities of gender-based violence, restricted access to education and health services, and displacement.
War affects men and women differently due to their societal roles and expectations. Both Afghanistan and Gaza have experienced sharp declines in the well-being of women and girls as a result of chronic conflict.
In Afghanistan, before the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, there was significant, if fragile, progress. According to UNICEF, female literacy rates were about 30% in 2018. The Afghan government in 2020 said women constituted about 22% of the workforce compared to virtually zero under previous Taliban rule from 1996-2001. However, with the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and the Taliban’s resurgence, there are reports of drastic regression, with women barred from employment outside the home and education beyond primary school.
The situation in Gaza, impacted by an Israeli blockade and recurrent conflict, presents a different set of challenges. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, three years before the devastating war that erupted on Oct. 7, 2023, following the Hamas attack on Israel, the unemployment rate for women in Gaza was more than 60%. Since the outbreak of war, much of Gaza has been destroyed, and the economy has collapsed. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has highlighted the psychological as well as physical toll on the population, especially women and children. Some 20,000 of the 35,000 Palestinians killed since Oct. 7 are women and children, and the survivors suffer from trauma and other mental health issues.
Women in both Afghanistan and Gaza also have suffered from GBV, restricted access to resources, and exclusion from public participation. Yet, women have devised innovative strategies to try to counteract their marginalization in both areas.
In Afghanistan, underground educational networks and economic ventures have resurged. These include clandestine schools and home-based businesses, which provide essential services and symbolize resistance against an oppressive regime. These secret endeavors challenge the status quo and ensure the continuity of learning and financial involvement for women.
In 2022, the U.S. State Department unveiled a U.S.-Afghan Consultative Mechanism that brings together Afghan women’s groups and outside scholars and civil society leaders to inform U.S. policy and find ways of supporting Afghan women. This platform aims to foster a space where Afghan women can continue to contribute to civil society despite their challenging circumstances. Such initiatives are crucial as they address immediate needs and empower women as key stakeholders in peace processes, aligning with global efforts to support women-led initiatives in conflict zones.
FEMENA is another advocacy organization supporting women’s rights across the Middle East and North Africa. FEMENA provides resources, conducts advocacy, and fosters networks to enhance women’s influence on policy and societal norms. Linking FEMENA’s efforts with Afghan organizations could offer effective strategies for enhancing women’s roles under oppressive regimes.
Despite the difficulty of covering Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, journalists have found inspiring stories.
Shukriya, a Kabul beautician interviewed by the New York Times, uses her salon for more than haircutting. It’s a covert hub for education and discussion, offering women a rare safe space. Her earnings exceed her husband’s, highlighting the salon’s vital role in supporting the family as well as a refuge from stress.
Women have faced fewer restrictions in Palestinian civil society. Beginning in 1978, the Palestinian women’s movement aimed to create gender equality in the West Bank and Gaza while promoting democratic civil society. Women’s organizations have provided vocational training, literacy education, and health information, even if they remain marginalized in broader political contexts.
In Gaza, community resilience has manifested through initiatives like community kitchens, which struggle to avert famine during the current conflict.
Sammer Abu Safiya,who lives in Gaza, highlighted the difficulties women face in accessing necessities. She told The Voices of Palestinian Women:“The war has a negative effect on all Palestinians and especially the women. Around 63 women get killed every day, and 37 women get injured every day. A lot of children lose their mothers and the life they were used to.”
As of March 30, 2024, nearly 5,000 children had been orphaned, Abu Safiya said.
Women also struggle to access hygiene products and many are experiencing difficulty becoming pregnant as well as complications in childbirth.
“The situation is quite challenging as nobody can access their land, and there is no production line. Everything we get is through humanitarian assistance,” Abu Saifya said. Women face the hardships of forced displacement and need to cook and care for their families in an environment where they cannot find clean water, bathrooms, or cooking fuel.
The Jerusalem Center for Women, a non-governmental organization founded in 1994 in East Jerusalem, offers resources and advocates for women’s rights within families and society. These include educational workshops and training programs to build capacity and knowledge for active public participation, along with legal assistance and advocacy to help women facing gender-based violence or discrimination. Additionally, the center provides psychological support to help women cope with trauma and mental health challenges. It also promotes community engagement and mobilization to strengthen women’s influence in decision-making processes and facilitates networking and coalition building to amplify their voices and extend their impact.
Amal Syam, general manager of the Women’s Affairs Center of the Palestinian National Authority, told the UN that 83 percent of women’s organizations in the Gaza Strip are still operational despite Israeli bombardment, focusing mainly on emergency response but also providing psychological support and legal counseling, cash assistance, hygiene, and dignity kits. The kits include buckets with lids to store clean water. They also come with soap and laundry detergent to help families maintain good hygiene practices and include menstrual hygiene products such as reusable and disposable pads, and multipurpose cloths.
Palestinian women’s groups have also historically pushed for legal reform and gender equality, including restrictions on child marriage, prevention of polygamy, and greater child custody rights.
A Comprehensive Approach to Women’s Needs
Supporting women in conflict and post-conflict societies requires a comprehensive approach that integrates international advocacy, education, economic empowerment, mental health support, and inclusive peace processes.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) emphasizes several key actions to help end violence against women and girls, including supporting survivors and advocating for their rights, challenging harmful gender norms, educating the next generation, and providing economic empowerment.
There is an urgent need for more international support for women-led initiatives in conflict zones. Policies should address immediate needs and empower women as key stakeholders in peace processes. Conflict zones demand special attention to the gendered aspects of war so that women’s voices are not marginalized but actively included in peacebuilding and recovery efforts.
Maryam Rezaei Zadeh is a Faculty Assistant and Mentor for Persian House, part of the Persian Capstone year-long program at the Persian Flagship Program, University of Maryland, and a contributor to the Middle East Perspectives program at the Stimson Center. Her research and academic interests lie at the intersection of international security and relations, focusing on empowering and advocating for women’s and marginalized groups’ rights in the Middle East.
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