NGO reveals harrowing impact of war and violence on Palestinian women and girls
New research from ActionAid details how Palestinian women have borne the brunt of violence, forced displacement, and systemic discrimination, both in Gaza and the West Bank over the past year.
More than 11,000 women have been killed in Gaza since October 2023, and some have been displaced up to ten times. Every day, 183 women in Gaza are giving birth in unsanitary conditions, with some women undergoing caesareans and emergency operations without sterilisation, anaesthesia or painkillers.
The report, titled “Agents of Change: The Role of Palestine’s Women-Led Organisations in Crisis”, details the severe challenges that Palestinian women and girls face, and calls for increased funding for women-led organisations and the urgent inclusion of women in peacebuilding and reconstruction processes.
Riham Jafari, Advocacy and Communications Coordinator at ActionAid Palestine, says: “Women and girls in Palestine face unique and severe challenges as the devastating war in Gaza continues and violence in the West Bank escalates, yet amid these crises they are showing remarkable resilience and emerging as trusted leaders in their communities.
“Their voices and perspectives must not be sidelined. It’s time for local and international stakeholders to value the essential contribution of women by increasing funding to women-led organisations and ensuring women have a seat at the table when crucial decisions about Palestine and its future are being made.”
Michelle Higelin, Executive Director at ActionAid Australia, says: “The year long conflict in Gaza has hit Palestinian women and girls the hardest. Women’s reproductive rights, health and security have been rapidly eroded over the past year. It is critical that women are at the forefront of the humanitarian response in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as peacebuilding and reconstruction efforts.
Key findings of the report include:
- Unseen Emotional and Psychological Toll: Palestinian women have been disproportionately affected by the war in Gaza, experiencing extreme levels of stress, anxiety, and trauma. Constant displacement has placed women in a perpetual state of instability, with one 16-year-old girl stating, “We don’t know where to go to find security.” The crowded living conditions exacerbate tensions, with another girl expressing: “No one can tolerate the other.”
- Rising Gender-Based Violence: The ongoing war in Gaza has exacerbated the threats women face, heightening the risk of sexual and gender-based violence, forced marriage, and exploitation. Women in displacement camps report a stark loss of privacy and safety, often facing harassment and abuse in overcrowded shelters, with one focus group participant noting: “In the past, walls were our cover, today it’s just a piece of nylon”. In the West Bank, women face violence from both Israeli soldiers and settlers. Recalling one incident, an activist from Hebron said her neighbour was “taken inside a room [by Israeli soldiers] all her clothes [were] taken off and [they] let [a] dog attack her, in front of her husband and kids.”
- Loss of safe spaces and gender-specific support: At the same time, access to safe spaces and support for women experiencing sexual and gender-based violence has hugely reduced due to repeated forced displacements, lack of funding and communications challenges. As the leader of one women-led organisation in Gaza said: “Some women got divorced during the war, we couldn’t support as we used to do, there were no communication mechanisms, our staff were not able to reach them”. The complete collapse of Gaza’s legal system has created a legal vacuum, leaving women unable to obtain justice.
- Severe Obstetric Care Crisis: The report exposes the dire state of maternal healthcare in Gaza, as pregnant women face high-risk births with little to no medical support, leading to tragic outcomes. Dr Adnan Radi at Al-Awda hospital in Gaza reported: “a sharp increase in the rate of [high-risk] pregnancies, complications [relating to] premature birth, an increase in miscarriages and problems such as infections, sepsis, bleeding, and others.” Access to adequate sexual and reproductive healthcare is virtually impossible in Gaza, with one women’s health centre manager commenting: “inserting an IUD is not possible due to the lack of sterilization of the materials needed by the doctor.”
- Additional workload and responsibilities: Women living in Gaza’s displacement camps have taken on the physically demanding and time-consuming work of running a household in a war zone, from carrying heavy buckets of water to their tents to cooking over open fires, while also taking on additional caring responsibilities. Amid severe food shortages, women are eating last and the least to ensure others in the family are fed, with Hala, a staff member at Alianza por la Solidaridad, commenting: “The worst thing women do, they put themselves in the bottom of everything, the last on the list, deprioritising herself and taking care of others.”
- Women’s Leadership Amid Crisis: Despite these immense challenges, Palestinian women have stepped into crucial leadership roles within their communities. From managing displacement camps to advocating for resources, women are actively leading efforts to rebuild Gaza. Samira, the manager of Al-Istiqama Camp, has transformed her personal grief into community support, saying: “After losing my children and home, I took it upon myself to strive to help displaced people.”
Going forward, the report calls for Palestinian women to be actively involved in all peace negotiations and political dialogues related to the region’s future, and to be recognised as essential agents of change in Gaza’s recovery.
As the war in Gaza continues and violence escalates in the West Bank, it is critical that the voices of Palestinian women are not only heard but acted upon. ActionAid is calling for urgent increased funding to women-led organisations, whose expertise and leadership are key to the recovery and peacebuilding efforts. Women must have a central role in all peace negotiations and reconstruction processes, ensuring that their unique perspectives and solutions are part of building a sustainable future for Palestine.
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For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Steph Wulf, Senior Communications Manager, ActionAid Australia
About ActionAid
ActionAid is a global federation working with more than 41 million people living in more than 71 of the world’s poorest countries. We want to see a just, fair and sustainable world, in which everybody enjoys the right to a life of dignity, and freedom from poverty and oppression. We work to achieve social justice and gender equality and to eradicate poverty, including by shifting power to local organisations and movements. Women are disproportionately impacted by disasters, conflicts and crises; that’s why we have a particular focus on women’s rights and cultivating women’s leadership in emergencies.