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20260531

Conflict-Related Sexual Violence - Presser | United Nations

Press conference by Pramila Patten, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, on Sexual Violence in Conflict. Patten presented the Secretary-General’s report on conflict-related sexual violence, and said cases of conflict-related sexual violence verified by the United Nations in 2025 rose sharply from 2024, “marked by extreme brutality, and overwhelmingly targeted women and girls.” The report says that in 2025, documented cases of sexual violence as a tactic of war, torture, terrorism, and political repression surged, while “multiple and overlapping political, security and humanitarian crises worsened.” A total of 77 parties, including state and non-state actors, are listed this year for cases of conflict-related sexual violence, including parties added to the list in previous years. New listings, Patten said, include three non-state actors operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, namely Wazalendo armed elements; Forces Nationales de Libération; and Mai Mai du groupe armé de l’Union des Patriotes pour la Libération du Congo. Two new state actors are also listed, she said, “the Israel Armed and Security Forces; namely the Israel Defence Forces, Israel Prison Service, including the Keter Special Forces, and the Police Counter-terrorism Unit, Yamam, are listed on the basis of credible information indicating continued patterns of rape and other forms of sexual violence, with an increase in the number of verified cases this year.” In 2025, Patten said, “the UN was able to verify 31 cases, primarily in detention settings, but also at checkpoints and during military operations against 14 men, seven women, nine boys and one girl from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, adding that this was “a pattern of sexual violence against Palestinians, including as a form of torture.” These violations, she said, “consisted of rape, including with objects, gang rape, attempted rape, physical violence to the genitals, instances of targeted shooting of the genitals, touching of breast and genitals, strip and cavity searches conducted without apparent security justification, forced nudity, and threats of rape.” The Russian Armed and Security Forces, the Special Representative said, “have also been listed by the Secretary-General this year based on UN verified information indicating continued patterns of rape and other forms of sexual violence perpetrated primarily against Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilian detainees.” She said, “in 2025, the UN was able to verify 310 cases of conflict related sexual violence, including rape, gang rape, genital mutilation, electric shocks and beatings to the genitals, affecting 280 men, 26 women and four girls perpetrated by the Russian Armed and Security forces, including the Federal Penitentiary Service, the Russian Armed Forces and the Federal Security Service.” Patten stressed that her mandate “isa Security Council mandate, and this is how countries fall within the purview of the mandate.” She said it was “based on whether it is - and this is spelt out in Security Council Resolution 1960. And even the Secretary-General can only list parties, credibly suspected of committing or being responsible for patterns of sexual violence for countries that are on the agenda of the Security Council.” The report indicates that sexual violence was perpetrated in detention in multiple settings, such as in Israel and the State of Palestine, the Russian Federation and Ukraine. In Myanmar, patterns of sexual violence continued to be used in detention settings as part of the repertoire of political violence to intimidate and punish opponents.

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