Iran’s Defenseless Women Facing Rape, Injustice, and Erasure
On the anniversary of the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict
Introduction
June 19, designated by the United Nations as the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, seeks to spotlight one of the most painful and silenced forms of violence in today’s world. Amid conflict, one of the most devastating and overlooked weapons remains sexual violence, a silent assault that lands not on battlegrounds, but upon the vulnerable bodies of women. In Iran, this form of violence has long been systematically deployed in prisons, detention centers, on the streets, and within the crises of poverty and displacement, particularly against widows, single mothers, and women without social or legal protection.
From the abandonment of women survivors of the Iran-Iraq War to cycles of sexual exploitation, to the homelessness and destitution of women following disasters such as the Bandar Abbas fire, and to the documented rapes in detention centers during the 2022 protests, what we are witnessing is not isolated cruelty, but a state strategy to humiliate, suppress, and subjugate women.
1. Widowed and Unprotected: The Forgotten Victims of the Iran-Iraq War
Over 50,000 Iranian women lost their husbands during the Iran-Iraq war and were left to confront a socio-legal landscape defined by deprivation and abuse rather than meaningful support. State-affiliated institutions such as the Martyrs Foundation, Imam Khomeini Relief Committee, and religious charities, in many cases, made aid conditional on temporary marriage (sigheh) or ideological allegiance.
An Amnesty International report (May 2024) clearly states: “Sexual violence in Iran, including against widows and unprotected women, is structural, systemic, and enabled by the state.”
The UN Fact-Finding Mission on Iran (March 2024) further warned that women lacking male guardianship are especially vulnerable to abuse by state agents, religious institutions, and the patriarchal judiciary in post-conflict settings.
Field studies from 2016 indicate that in war-affected provinces such as Khuzestan, Kermanshah, and Ilam, more than 70% of female-headed households reported experiencing domestic violence, unemployment, gender discrimination, and sexual threats in the workplace. Far from providing protection, Iran’s judiciary and sociocultural system often criminalize and stigmatize these women.
2. After the Bandar Abbas Fire: Silenced Testimonies of Grief and Violence
The industrial fire at Shahid Rajaee Port in Bandar Abbas on April 26, 2025, resulted in over 70 deaths and 1,200 injuries, making it one of the most severe industrial disasters in recent years. Yet largely ignored were the women who lost their husbands, livelihoods, and shelter in its aftermath.
One user on platform X wrote: “They beat our sons and raped our daughters… Bandar Abbas… fires, floods, collapsing buildings… We’ve lived half a century in fear, bracing for even worse news.”
Another posted: “Mothers lost their children’s names to the wind. Their mourning cries on the Rajaee pier turned into protests—but no one listened.”
A report by the Women’s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (May 2025) warned that among the missing were female workers, single women, and widowed mothers. Many families faced discrimination and obstruction by authorities when attempting to identify bodies or request assistance.
3. Sexual Violence in Detention: A State-Orchestrated Form of Torture
During the nationwide protests of 2022, dozens of women, men, and minors were arrested and subjected to rape and sexual abuse in detention centers operated by the Ministry of Intelligence, IRGC, and police forces.
Amnesty International’s report (December 2023) documented: “In 45 confirmed cases, victims including 14-year-old girls and young boys were raped or sexually assaulted using batons, bottles, and hoses.”
The UN Fact-Finding Mission (March 2024) reaffirmed that sexual violence in Iran is a deliberate method of state repression, rather than isolated or sporadic incidents. The goal: to gender-humiliate, to break political will, and to extract forced confessions under torture.
4. Legal Analysis: Sexual Violence as a Crime Against Humanity
Each of these instances constitutes a serious human rights violation and, under international law, also qualifies as acts of torture and crimes against humanity:
- Under the Convention Against Torture (CAT), rape in detention qualifies as torture;
- The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) defines systematic sexual violence against civilians as a crime against humanity;
- UN Security Council Resolution 1325 mandates the protection of women in times of conflict and crisis;
- The CEDAW Committee interprets sexual violence—especially when targeting marginalized women—as both gender-based discrimination and psychological/physical torture;
- Iran has failed to ratify or comply with any of these obligations and has refused to accede to protocols on trafficking and violence against women.
As such, the documented patterns in Iran may be subject to prosecution under international criminal mechanisms.
Final Warning and Call to International Action
Iran’s patriarchal culture and institutional denial of women’s rights have normalized violence against widows and unprotected women. By reducing women to traditional roles, and by denying them legal recourse, the regime has enabled a systematic campaign of gender-based harm. These women have lost not only bread, homes, and children—but also their bodily autonomy, their voices, and their dignity. They are not merely neglected; they are exploited by a state policy that thrives on invisibility.
We call on the United Nations Human Rights Council, the International Criminal Court, and all international bodies dedicated to women’s rights:
- To urgently investigate sexual violence against Iranian women as part of state repression;
- To establish independent documentation and support mechanisms for survivors;
- To hold perpetrators, including senior state actors, accountable through international justice.
Iran’s silenced women—beneath the rubble, within the cells—still whisper their songs of dignity. The world, if it chooses not to see or listen, becomes complicit in this darkness.
