Women This Week: UN Reports on Sexual Violence and Other Crimes Against Sudanese Refugees

UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Visits Calls for International Support 

Following a trip to Chad, the UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, warned of widespread violence—including sexual violence—against refugees from Sudan and called for increased international support. As part of her trip, Patten visited the Ouaddaï region, where over 620,000 Sudanese refugees are sheltered, 90 percent of whom are women and children. She spoke to refugee women who provided accounts of conflict-related sexual violence at the hands of the Rapid Support Forces, including rape, trafficking, and abduction. They also warned that the crimes were being further aggravated by limited medical and legal services available to survivors. “We must respond with unwavering solidarity to conflict-affected populations, including survivors of sexual violence, and must urgently alleviate their suffering,” she said. 

Data Shows Rise in Gender-Based Violence in Great Britain 

The United Kingdom’s (UK) National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing has released a report showing that 20 percent of all reported crime in England and Wales from 2022 to 2023 was committed against women, amounting to almost one million offenses. The report also reveals that one in every six murders in England and Wales during the same period was related to domestic abuse and projects that at least one in every twelve women will become a victim each year of gender-based violent crimes, including rape, stalking, harassment, and online sexual abuse. Reported cases of violence against women and girls (VAWG) increased by 37 percent between 2018 and 2023. UK police warned that the violence has reached “epidemic levels,” and Maggie Blyth, the police national lead for VAWG, called the situation “a national emergency.” In response, the new British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said that his government would release a plan to have violence against women and girls.  

Outcry After Illinois Woman Shot by Police at Home 

A sheriff’s deputy in Illinois has been charged with first-degree murder following the fatal shooting of a thirty-six-year-old woman—Sonya Massey—at her home in Springfield. Massey called police to her home to report a suspected prowler. Thirty-year-old Sean Grayson was at the scene with his partner, where the situation escalated. Footage shows Grayson speaking with Massey and requesting that she remove a pot of boiling water from the stove. While moving the pot, Massey said, “I’ll rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” Grayson subsequently threatened to shoot Massey in the face, and she quickly apologized. The video then shows her ducking before being shot three times. Grayson has been indicted by a grand jury on three counts of first-degree murder and one count each of aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct. He has pleaded not guilty. “Black women don’t get the consideration and the respect in America,” said Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Massey’s family. 

Alleged Gang Rape in Paris of Australian Woman Raises Alarm Ahead of Olympics 

Paris police are investigating the alleged gang rape of a twenty-five-year-old Australian woman that took place just days before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. The French media reported that the woman, whose identity remains anonymous, entered a kebab shop in the Pigalle neighborhood with her dress partially torn off, saying that she had just been raped by five men. The shop owners called the authorities, and she was provided medical assistance and taken to the hospital. The Australian Olympic Team was made aware of the alleged attack and advised not to wear team uniforms in public spaces. “The investigation into the charge of gang rape likely to have been committed on the night of July 19 to 20 has been entrusted to the second judicial police district,” the prosecutor’s office reported. 

Imaan Mirza is the intern for the Women and Foreign Policy Program.