Violence Against Women During Armed Conflicts

Violence against women is an issue that crosses geographic borders and cultural barriers, but it is especially prevalent in armed conflicts even though it is widely accepted that violence against women is unlawful and should be punished. This paper focuses on the flaws in international humanitarian law which fail to provide adequate protection in conflict zones. Both past and present conflicts can shine light on the steps that need to be taken to address this issue, and related sub-issues like prostitution, sexual mutilation, strip searches, forced nudity, forced abductions, and forced marriage/sexual slavery.