|
In addition to the general
effects of violence and lack of health care:
-
Women are uniquely
vulnerable to vitamin and iron deficiencies-particularly anaemia,
which can be fatal for pregnant women and their babies.
-
Women suffer a range
of reproductive health problems, from not having sanitary supplies
for menstruation to life-threatening complications related to
pregnancy.
-
The stress and disruption
of war often lead to a rise in gender-based and sexual violence.
-
Women are primarily
responsible for those made vulnerable by war-children, the sick
and the elderly.
-
Women's vulnerability
is further increased by the loss of men and boys, disruptions
of the social structure, and other conflict factors. This is
especially true in Iraq, where many households are headed by
women due to the deaths of male family members during the Iran-Iraq
war of the 1980s and the Gulf War of 1991.
|