Women This Week: Rate of Women Killed in Conflict Doubles in 2023

Women and Girls Also Experiencing Increase in Conflict-related Sexual Violence 

The secretary-general of the United Nations (UN) published his annual report this week on Women, Peace and Security, which included staggering figures on the number of women experiencing grave impacts from conflict-related violence around the world. The report found that in addition to increasing numbers of women living in and near conflict zones, the number of women killed in conflict-related violence doubled in 2023 compared to the previous year. The report also found a 50 percent increase in the rate of sexual violence. In a particularly alarming statistic, the UN reported a 300 percent increase in the rate of conflict-related sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo, for a total of 123,000 cases. “This is happening in the context of a larger war on women. The deliberate targeting of women’s rights is not unique to conflict-affected countries but is even more lethal in those settings,” said UN Women.  

Infant Mortality Increasing in Post-Roe America 

A new report from the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Pediatrics shows that infant mortality increased in the United States following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision. JAMA looked at data from Texas in the eighteen months following the overturn of Roe v. Wade and found an increase of up to 7 percent in some of those months—or about 247 excess deaths. The authors found that most reported deaths were from congenital anomalies or birth defects. The lead author, Parvati Singh, “suggests it could be due to fetuses incompatible with life…being carried to term.” Additionally, scholars have found that people who experience unwanted pregnancies and are unable to terminate them are less likely to attend routine healthcare visits, increasing the risk of complications. “Infant mortality is very uncommon, so small increases mean large changes. It’s 2024, and we should not be seeing increases. We should be seeing decreases,” said Ushma Upadhyay, a professor at the University of California at San Francisco. Thirteen states currently have total abortion bans, and several others have restrictions. 

Women Players Threaten Boycott if FIFA Continues Saudi Arabian Sponsorship 

Over one hundred professional footballers are demanding that the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) terminate its sponsorship with the Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco. In a letter to the chair of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, the signatories highlight the negative role that Aramco—one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies in the world—has had on climate change, as well as the rights of women and LGBTQ+ people in Saudi Arabia. They also argue that “Saudi authorities have been spending billions in sports sponsorship to try to distract from the regime’s brutal human rights reputation, but its treatment of women speaks for itself.” The players are demanding that FIFA terminate its deal with Aramco, select other sponsors instead, and establish a review committee for future deals, which includes representation for female players. “I think you’ve seen over the past couple of years that women’s teams are not scared to stand up for what they believe in,” commented Vivianne Miedema of Manchester City to the BBC.