Gender and conflict

This blog series discusses the interplay of gender and armed conflict, aiming to nurture an understanding of gender norms in the field of humanitarian action, international humanitarian law and its intersectional nature with related fields such as identity, ethnicity, sexuality and diversity.

Beyond prevalence: new approaches to measuring sexual- and gender-based violence prevention in conflict settings

December 5, 2024 12 mins read Analysis / Gender / Gender and conflict / IHL / Sexual Violence / Social Protection / Special Protections / Special Themes Zuleyka Piniella & Jessica Lenz

When discussing the measurement of sexual- and gender-based violence (SGBV) prevention in humanitarian settings, reactions ...

Applying IHL with a gender perspective in the planning and conduct of military operations

October 24, 2024 16 mins read Analysis / Conduct of Hostilities / Gender / Gender and conflict / Sexual Violence / Special Protections / Special Themes Kristina Lindvall, Paula Iwanowska & Vanessa Murphy

Gender can still be a confusing and contested subject for international humanitarian law (IHL) and ...

Forced to report: mandatory reporting of sexual violence in armed conflict

July 4, 2024 14 mins read Accountability / Analysis / Gender / Gender and conflict / Health Care / IHL / Sexual Violence / Social Protection / Special Themes Maria Carolina Aissa de Figueredo

Over the last decade, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and its Red ...

What are the transformative potentials of sexual and reproductive health and rights in humanitarian assistance: a feminist inquiry

April 18, 2024 12 mins read Access / Analysis / Gender / Gender and conflict / Health Care / Health care / Humanitarian Action / Sexual Violence / Social Inclusion / Social Protection / Special Themes Peixuan Xie

From frontline female combatants with the People’s Defence Force in Myanmar to queer Syrian refugees ...

What can the humanitarian community learn from the Colombian Truth Commission’s LGBTIQ-subchapter?

March 21, 2024 13 mins read Analysis / Gender / Gender and conflict / Health care / Humanitarian Action / Localisation / Sexual Violence / Social Inclusion / Social Protection Elias Dehnen

As part of the historic 2016 peace agreement, the “Commission for the Clarification of Truth, ...

Falling under the radar: the problem of algorithmic bias and military applications of AI

March 14, 2024 10 mins read Analysis / Artificial Intelligence and Armed Conflict / Autonomous Weapons / Avoiding civilian harm during military cyber operations / Cybersecurity and data protection in humanitarian action / Gender and conflict / Human Costs of Cyber Ingvild Bode

Last week, states parties met for the first session of the Group of Governmental Experts ...

Online violence: real life impacts on women and girls in humanitarian settings

January 4, 2024 11 mins read Analysis / Cybersecurity and data protection in humanitarian action / Gender and conflict / New Technologies / Technology in Humanitarian Action Megan O’Brien

Online violence is not contained by the digital sphere – it is killing women and ...

Sexual violence in conflict and weapons: unpacking the links for better prevention

September 28, 2023 7 mins read Gender / Gender and conflict / Sexual Violence / Weapons Hana Salama

It’s often said that sexual violence is a weapon of war, but the actual weapons used to perpetrate these crimes are rarely discussed. ...

Sexual and gender-based violence in migration contexts: does faith sensitivity matter?

September 21, 2023 20 mins read Analysis / Gender and conflict / Migration / Religion / Sexual Violence Sandra Iman Pertek, Ahmed Al-Dawoody & Amjad Saleem

Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is tragically widespread along migration journeys, especially when these take ...

Gender inequality, armed conflict and climate change: why militaries can and should map compounded risk

September 29, 2022 15 mins read Analysis / Climate change, conflict and humanitarian action / Gender / Gender and conflict / Humanitarian Action / New Technologies Jody M. Prescott, Robin Lovell & Team Sandhurst

In areas marked by gender inequality, women and girls are particularly at risk of the ...

What does ‘back to basics’ mean for gender and the fundamental principles?

September 1, 2022 13 mins read Analysis / Back to basics: humanitarian principles in contemporary armed conflict / Gender / Gender and conflict / Generating Respect for IHL / Humanitarian Action / Humanitarian Principles / Law and Conflict Ariana Lopes Morey

The recently-launched ICRC blog series ‘Back to basics: humanitarian principles in contemporary armed conflict’ aims ...

‘Catching up with the curve’: the participation of women in disarmament diplomacy

August 25, 2022 12 mins read Analysis / Gender / Gender and conflict / Humanitarian Action / Humanitarian diplomacy / Law and Conflict Véronique Christory

Though it cannot be up to women alone to capture gendered impacts in treaty texts ...