NEWS – AUGUST 2026

The women of Israel, Christian, Muslim, Druze and Jew, are the ones who serve on the frontline and the ones who hold down the home front, who volunteer in every imaginable way. The women of Israel have held each other during our darkest moments and contrary to what the media wants you to think about our country, we support each other. While Israel is not perfect by any means, we are certainly not a country where division and distrust are pervasive.

On 7 October, Hamas made no distinction between any nationality – they slaughtered indiscriminately. Fatma Alttalaqat, 35, a mother of nine children, was murdered by Hamas terrorists near Ofakim on October 7, 2023. Aisha, a 16-year-old Muslim Bedouin girl, was taken hostage on that Black Sabbath. These are just two examples of many.

The women of Israel have had their bond forged stronger by the fires of war. We have buried our husband and children together, we have celebrated the release of our hostages together, we have prayed together, we have wept together and we are trying to rebuild, together.

The women of Israel are the wives, girlfriends, partners of soldiers, offering strength and support while our warriors defend and protect. The weight of responsibility that they carry on their shoulders is enormous- and yet they are the unbreakable spine of our country. When I think of the women of Israel, I think of women like Tali Hadad, a kindergarten teacher from Ofakim who rescued her wounded son and other victims amidst intense gunfire on 7 October or Rachel Goldberg-Polin, who in her fight to free her son, Hersh, from captivity inspired the world with her strength and humanity. Hersh was murdered along with five other hostages and the world, in turn, hold Rachel in her grief with love. I think of Noura, who turned her restaurant kitchen into a place soldiers could come and eat for free. I think of the formidable Lucy Aharish and Lt Ella Waweya, who are our voices to the media and Arab world.

Our women defending us in the skies, flew missions to Iran as pilots and navigators to strike at the heart of the despotic regime that has persecuted their own women and girls. There is something magnificently poetic about that.

We are the women of Israel. We are complex. We are diverse. We hurt. We heal. We fight. We are resilient. We are waiting for you to meet us.

In the narrow, winding alleys of displacement camps, stories of survival echo quietly beneath the canvas tents. For many women in the Gaza Strip, the war has not only stripped away their homes and safety. It has erased the most fundamental components of their personal sovereignty.

To understand the daily reality of a woman seeking divorce in Gaza today, one must look past the statistics of destruction and into the crumbling remnants of the civil infrastructure. Since the escalation of hostilities in October 2023, the judicial system has faced near-total paralysis. Courts were flattened, legal archives buried under rubble, and the formal mechanisms designed to protect women’s legal rights were temporarily wiped out.

For over two years, thousands of women seeking separation from abusive or untenable marriages found themselves trapped in a bureaucratic and physical void. While some courts have begun a limited, fragile resumption of operations, navigating the system remains an uphill battle defined by missing paperwork, destroyed evidence, and missing documentation of domestic abuse or financial neglect.

The Legal and Human Cost of Survival

According to reports from local human rights organizations and legal aid groups, thousands of pending family law cases remain stalled. Women face compounding hurdles…

• The destruction of evidence: Medical reports, police records, and legal testimonies documenting psychological or physical harm lie beneath tons of debris.
• Financial and Social Pressures: Many husbands refuse amicable divorces, often leveraging financial distress, the refusal to pay alimony, or social stigma to block separation.

A Fractured Judiciary

With scarce personnel, damaged facilities, and lost archives, judges and lawyers struggle to process a staggering backlog of cases under catastrophic conditions.

Yet, behind these institutional barriers are deeply human stories of resilience.

Consider Marwa Fawzy (a pseudonym used to protect her identity), whose journey toward separation began before the war. Displaced repeatedly, facing the profound grief of losing her son, and enduring extreme economic hardship, Marwa viewed divorce not as the end of a chapter, but as her ultimate weapon for survival. When her husband was released from Israeli detention, she pleaded for an amicable separation. Like many men in similar positions, he refused, citing a supposed change of heart. But Marwa’s resolve was unshakeable. Having endured years without basic respect or partnership, she refuses to remain tied to a dynamic that drains her spirit. Today, she moves between legal aid offices and women’s shelters, fighting a fragmented system alongside other women seeking the same elusive verdict: freedom.

Marwa draws hope from women like Eman Raed who fought a decade-long battle for her rights, ultimately securing her divorce only after relinquishing all financial entitlements just to escape under intense legal pressure. For these women, divorce is not a casual choice; it is a desperate, calculated act of self-preservation.

Redefining Sacrifice: Breaking Generational Trauma

In traditional patriarchal societies, women facing marital breakdown are frequently met with the familiar refrain: “For the sake of the children, sacrifice. Forget your dignity, swallow your pain.”

However, psychologists and human rights advocates in the region note a profound generational shift. Women in Gaza are increasingly recognizing that raising children in a deeply fractured, abusive, or violent household inflicts invisible wounds far deeper than the physical reality of separation. By choosing to reclaim their autonomy, these mothers are teaching their children a vital, unspoken lesson. Self-respect, emotional safety, and dignity are non-negotiable.

A Call to the International Community

On paper, Palestinian family law and international human rights conventions, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, unequivocally enforce women’s rights to equality, protection, and legal dissolution of marriage. Yet, the chasm between legal text and wartime reality is vast.

In a society grappling with collective trauma, the women of Gaza who pursue divorce do not need moral judgment. They need unwavering solidarity.

When reconciliation is utterly impossible, the international community, legal advocates, and human rights defenders must amplify their voices, ensuring that the fundamental human right to freedom, safety, and dignity is restored – one verdict at a time.