U.N. says verified conflict-related sexual violence surged in 2025, listing 77 parties

The United Nations said on Friday that verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence rose sharply in 2025 compared with 2024, with the Secretary-General's new report listing 77 parties, both state and non-state, in connection with such abuses.

The U.N. spokesperson told reporters that the 2025 report characterizes the incidents as marked by "extreme brutality" and notes that sexual violence is being used as a tactic of war, torture, terrorism and political repression in multiple settings. "A total of 77 parties, including state and non-state actors, are listed this year," the spokesperson said.

The briefing highlighted that abduction and sexual violence are part of broader attack patterns in several conflicts. The spokesperson singled out remote areas of Burkina Faso, Mali and northern Mozambique, saying girls as young as 11 have been forced into sexual slavery and subjected to repeated rapes in captivity that led to unwanted pregnancies.

The report also documents sexual violence in detention settings in several contexts, the spokesperson said, citing Israel and the State of Palestine, the Russian Federation and Ukraine, and Myanmar among the locations named. The spokesperson encouraged journalists to consult the full report online and noted that Primila Patten had briefed the press earlier about the findings.

Why it matters: the report frames conflict-related sexual violence not as isolated incidents but as a tactic used across multiple theaters, raising questions about accountability and the protection of civilians, especially women and children.

The U.N. did not provide a comprehensive, itemized breakdown of all 77 parties named during the briefing; details and country-specific findings are in the published report, the spokesperson said. The briefing concluded by stressing the need for protection, accountability and humanitarian access to care for survivors.