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Thank you for your donation to ICAN.  Your contribution strengthens women peacebuilders who are preventing violence, protecting communities, and rebuilding trust in some of the world’s most fragile contexts.  By supporting ICAN and the Women’s Alliance for Security Leadership (WASL), you help women-led organizations in more than 40 countries mediate conflicts, assist families in crisis, and drive […]

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Open Statement to the United Nations Security Council on behalf of Women Peacebuilders Marking 25 Years of the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda

On October 6, 2025, the U.N. Security Council holds its annual open debate on Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security. Today, we are not issuing a new statement. Instead, we are honoring our community of women peacebuilders—who appeared before the Security Council throughout these 25 years, speaking for the millions they represent—by echoing their messages.

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Home » ICAN Featured » Invisible Women: Gendered Dimensions of Return, Rehabilitation and Reintegration from Violent Extremism

Invisible Women: Gendered Dimensions of Return, Rehabilitation and Reintegration from Violent Extremism

11 January 2019

The joint United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) publication, Invisible Women: Gendered Dimensions of Return, Reintegration and Rehabilitation, is an effort to map the gaps and challenges pertaining to the reintegration and rehabilitation of women and girls associated with violent extremist movements and establish a preliminary evidence-base of good practices and approaches. The report and its methodology centralize the experiences of local civil society, in particular women-led civil society organizations (CSOs) who contributed to the report through interviews, dialogues, and case study profiles. The research emphasizes the necessity of integrated, multi-stakeholder approaches that enable state and civil society to work in tandem, based on the comparative advantages of each.

Executive Summary and Programming Guidance available in French and Arabic.

Full Report available in Arabic

Executive Summary Full Report Programming Guidance

Sector-Specific Analysis

Draws attention to the existing policy frameworks, gaps and challenges related to addressing disarmament, reintegration and rehabilitation of people associated with violent extremist groups, with attention to the gaps related to women and children in particular.

On legal processes and issues includes discussions on repatriation, prosecution, sentencing, citizenship rights, restorative justice measures, and access to legal aid for returnees.

Addresses security issues both from and for returnees. It addresses measures needed to mitigate the risk of recidivism while avoiding further marginalization and potential secondary or re-radicalization. It also touches on the protection needs of returnees from retributional violence and SGBV, and the role of state security actors and civil society organizations in this process.

Highlights the importance of public awareness and community sensitization, including the role of the media and local leaders to combat retribution, stigma, fear and mistrust, and enable successful reintegration. It also highlights the risks that individuals face when seeking to raise such sensitive issues.

Focuses on the need for ideological transformation through religious or other forms of counselling and mentoring for those who have been convinced of violent extremist narratives, with attention to the needs of women who often have less opportunities for deepening their religious literacy.

Addresses the importance of providing socioeconomic support (including access to education, relevant livelihoods skills and job training, employer sensitization and job placement) and enabling economic independence not only as a practical necessity but also a path to rehabilitation and resilience against the ideologues of violent extremism.

Draws attention to the need for psychosocial support, such as trauma healing, tools to cope with stigma, and family therapy, for returnees and their families whether they are victims, perpetrators, or both. Given the propensity of sexual violence among women and girls, the need for reproductive health services and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases is noted, as well as the unique dynamics of newly female-headed households.

Examples of Good Practice

 Institutionalizing Gendered Rehabilitation through Civil Society-Government Collaboration

 

Trust Between Community Women and Police as a Resource for Prevention and Reintegration

 

Combating Stigma and Radicalization through Islamic Peace Education

 

From Sewing Suicide Belts to Sowing Sustainable Peace

 

Healing from Trauma and Reclaiming Dignity through Economic Independence

 

Deradicalization through Psychosocial Therapy in Prisons

 

Finding a New Sense of Purpose through Psychosocial Therapy

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