The report covered 21 situations of concern and documented 9,788 cases verified by the UN in 2025
UNITED NATIONS:
Seventeen years after the UN recognized conflict-related sexual violence as a threat to international peace and security, Pakistan has called for the “full, faithful and non-selective” implementation of Security Council resolutions, including on women, peace and security, aimed at combating this crime.
Speaking at the 15-member Council, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s permanent representative to the UN, said “these resolutions have clear obligations to prevent, protect, investigate, prosecute and repair” in an effort to end sexual violence in conflicts.
It would be the “true test” of the Security Council’s commitment to the issue, he said in a debate convened by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), council president in July, attended by more than 70 delegations. They considered the Secretary-General’s recent report on conflict-related sexual violence, presented by Pramila Patten, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict.
The report covered 21 situations of concern and documented 9,788 cases verified by the UN in 2025, more than double the number recorded in 2024. “Yet such numbers can never capture the full scope and scale of this chronically underreported crime,” said MS Patten, the special representative, adding that 2.0 clinics were estimated to be 0. unreported and unaddressed.
The mandate was established by Council resolution 1888 (2009), building on the Council’s recognition of conflict-related sexual violence as a matter of international peace and security, including its use as a weapon and tactic of war and the continued impunity enjoyed by perpetrators.
In his remarks, Ambassador Asim Ahmad, the Pakistani envoy, said conflict-related sexual violence devastated individuals, shattered families, terrorized communities and left wounds between generations, including for children born of conflict-related rape.
At the same time, he emphasized that the Secretary-General’s ‘list mechanism’, the blacklist of perpetrators, should cover all conflict situations and foreign occupation on the council’s agenda.
“No situation should be shielded from scrutiny and no perpetrator should be allowed to treat sexual violence as gratuitous,” the Pakistani envoy said.
“Sanction regimes, where appropriate, should be used more effectively against persistent offenders, and legal processes must be designed to be more victim- and survivor-centred, trauma-informed and accessible.”
Ambassador Asim Ahmad also emphasized the need to strengthen accountability “comprehensively and consistently,” saying that victims and survivors must receive timely and comprehensive support, including medical care, psychosocial assistance, legal assistance, livelihood support and reparations.
“Prevention must be placed at the center of our collective response,” the Pakistani envoy said. “It requires compliance with international humanitarian law and international human rights law; meaningful participation of women in peace processes; early warning; sustained funding; responsible arms control; and above all, addressing the root causes of conflict, including foreign occupation and denial of the right to self-determination.”
“The true test of this Council’s commitment lies in the full, faithful and non-selective implementation of its resolutions, including on women, peace and security,” he added.
