Use of sexual violence as weapon of war surged in 2025 — UN

The UN’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, has warned that nearly 10,000 verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence were recorded worldwide in 2025.

This she described as a sharp escalation in the use of rape and other forms of sexual abuse as weapons of war.

Releasing the United Nations annual report at UN Headquarters, Patten said: “In 2025 documented cases of sexual violence as a tactic of war, torture, terrorism and political repression marked by extreme brutality and overwhelmingly targeting women and girls increased dramatically.”

It was detailed in a Friday report on the UN website titled, “Conflict-related sexual violence cases more than doubled in 2025, UN warns,” and obtained by our correspondent on Saturday.

The report verified 9,788 cases across 21 conflict-affected countries, but stressed that the figure represents only documented incidents and does not capture the full scale of abuse.

Patten cautioned that the data should not be seen as comprehensive.

She said, “The figures contained in this report should be understood not as the full picture, but as an indication of a much broader pattern of violations that remain largely unseen and underreported.”

According to the findings, the abuses include “rape, gang rape, sexual slavery, forced marriage, trafficking and abductions committed by both State and non-State actors.”

While women and girls remain the primary targets, the report also documents cases involving men and boys, “often in detention settings and as a form of torture,” as well as heightened risks faced by LGBTQI+ persons.

Victims span a wide age range, with the report citing cases involving children as young as one year old and adults up to 70 years old, including persons with disabilities.

The UN said the violence is frequently accompanied by extreme brutality, including killings following rape and suicides among survivors.

Patten stated: “At its heart, this report is about the human suffering of all these survivors and communities living in the shadow of war.”

The report also highlights the role of armed groups and criminal networks, noting that non-State armed actors continue to use sexual violence to assert control over territory and populations, particularly in fragile and resource-rich areas.

It adds that displacement, insecurity, and weakened protection systems are increasing the vulnerability of women and girls in border and remote regions.

It further warns that humanitarian access restrictions and funding gaps are hampering both documentation of abuses and delivery of support services.

The UN is calling for strengthened prevention, accountability, and survivor-centred responses, urging Member States and the Security Council to intensify action across conflict settings.

The report urges the Security Council and Member States to strengthen prevention, accountability and support for survivors.

Recommendations include:

• ensuring unhindered humanitarian access,
• expanding monitoring and sanctions mechanisms,
• supporting women’s protection advisers in UN missions,
• strengthening investigations and prosecutions, and
• increasing funding for medical, psychosocial and legal services.

Ms. Patten appealed for the focus to remain on survivors.

“These violations are neither isolated nor confined to a handful of contexts.

“They are global in scale, devastating in impact and demand a response centred not on political posturing, selective outrage or pre-conceived narratives, but on the rights, needs and dignity of victims and survivors,” she said.