STATEMENT OF GEORGIA, October, 2015.

Despite the broad understanding of the nature of the problem and the numerous efforts made at all levels to address them, we have yet to see tangible progress on the ground. Women and girls continue to fall victim to acts of violence, murder, maiming and arbitrary detention committed by parties to conflicts across the globe. Boko Haram’s abduction of hundreds of women and girls in Chibok and the kidnappings in Syria and Iraq committed by Daesh and other terrorist groups are glaring examples of the types of gross violations to which women in armed conflict are subjected. The areas controlled by non-State actors and terrorist groups, as well as territories under illegal foreign military occupation, are zones of grave risk for women, with imminent threats to their lives posed by actors that operate in total denial of internationally recognized legal norms.