Women in the Middle East are engaged in a multilayered struggle. They are resisting not only gender inequality but also political repression, cultural domination and colonial policies.

Across a vast geography stretching from Algeria to Palestine, from Iran to Kurdistan, women continue to fight for their rights in many areas, including education, political representation, freedom of dress and armed resistance. They have become the bearers of a deep desire for freedom, expressed in the slogan “Jin, jiyan, azadî” (Woman, life, freedom). One of the scholars examining these struggles at the academic level is Dr. Nelly Jazra.

Dr. Nelly Jazra, a Lebanese academic working within the European Commission, closely examines women's resistance movements in the Middle East in her recently published book ‘The Struggle of Women’, with a particular focus on the role of Kurdish women in Rojava. She spoke to ANF about the past, present and future of this struggle.

Your recent book 'The Struggle of Women' was just published. In it, you focus on women's movements across different countries. How did this work begin?

I am from Lebanon. I was born in Beirut and have spent most of my life in the Middle East, so I am very familiar with the region’s issues. Later, I moved to Europe to work under the umbrella of the European Commission.

But I have continued to follow political developments in the Middle East, especially the struggles of women in these countries. In particular, with the emergence of ISIS and the resulting changes, I became increasingly curious about how these political transformations were affecting the lives of women.

Before we turn to recent women’s movements, I would like to ask about the historical struggle of women in the Middle East. This struggle has often remained in the shadows, and there is a perception that such a struggle never existed. Is that true?

Not at all. Of course, we cannot say that all women have been part of this struggle. But in many cases, when women’s rights are threatened or when they are pushed out of public life, they take action. This became particularly visible with the rise of extremist movements, especially ISIS, in countries like Syria and Iraq. This also affected other countries where similar extremist forces were present.

These movements tried to impose rules on women that they did not want to accept. As a result, women rose up and began to resist. Of course, we cannot say that every woman opposed them, because some women did align with these groups and embraced their ideology, but they were a small minority.

The majority of women opposed the rollback of their rights.

It is known that women played an active role during the anti-colonial period in the Middle East. What kind of role did they take on during this time? Were there feminist movements?

Yes, there were. The first women’s movements go back to the time of the French mandate, in the early 20th century. During that period, women in Egypt, Lebanon and Syria began to mobilize. One of the first symbolic steps they took to assert their presence in public life was removing their headscarves.

Later, they began making demands, organizing in groups, and calling for participation at various levels. In the 1950s, women in many Middle Eastern countries gained the right to vote. In some cases, this even happened earlier than in some Western countries. They also demanded essential rights such as the right to work, the right to education, rights related to their children, and access to certain professions.

Of course, this was not easy. After independence, some countries made it easier for women to gain these rights. For example, in Lebanon, there was a certain level of freedom in education and professional life. But in other countries, it is much more difficult.

In your book, you mention that Kurdish women took up arms in the context of the civil war to defend their rights. Could you elaborate on this?

Yes. The struggle of Kurdish women is not something that began recently. It goes much further back because the Kurdish people as a whole have never been officially recognized. During the administrative division of the Middle East, Kurds were split across several countries, such as Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria.

As a result, they were never able to unite as a people and establish an independent state. For example, after the genocide, Armenians founded Armenia and gained a state. But the Kurds were not recognized. This is largely a result of developments that occurred in Turkey after the First World War.

Because of this, the Kurdish struggle has been long and continuous, and women have always been a part of it. Women were recognized on an equal level with men. This allowed them to access education, to bear arms and to fight under the same conditions as men. The struggle became even stronger when radical religious groups appeared in Kurdish regions and tried to impose their own laws.

That period was far more turbulent and harsh. This is the part I focus on most in my book. Women organized themselves and fought for their rights.

How does this form of Kurdish women's resistance fit within the broader context of feminist struggles in the Middle East?

Kurdish women have set a powerful example. Their struggle was not only about taking up arms to defend their people, it was also about asserting their existence as women. Of course, I cannot say this applies to all women. We still live in patriarchal systems and male dominance remains very strong. However, through these uprisings, women wanted to be recognized not only as fighters but also as women. They wanted to participate in society and to share power.

In your book, you point out that the tools of women's resistance vary across Middle Eastern countries. What were some of the different forms of resistance you observed in the countries you studied?

Yes, the situations in these countries are quite different. In Lebanon, for example, movements are mostly organized through civil structures.

Apart from periods of civil war, women’s movements rarely took the form of armed resistance. Instead, structures that demand rights are mostly civil society organizations. These organizations work on issues such as combating violence against women, advocating for women's political participation, and fighting for custody rights for children. This is because in Lebanon, personal status laws for both women and men are not determined by civil law, but by sectarian law. Each religious sect or faith group has its own legal framework. Since these frameworks are generally shaped by religious authorities, women are often at a disadvantage. This is the situation in Lebanon.

In Syria, women were granted rights during the early period of the Baath regime. These rights were later somewhat neglected, but they had been established in the beginning.

A similar situation occurred in Iraq. However, as the structure of society changed and authoritarian or dictatorial regimes became more entrenched, women’s rights began to regress. This pushed women to organize. But organizing was not easy, because freedom of expression was extremely limited and the space for freedom was very narrow. So women struggled to form organizations. Still, they managed to do so. Political representation, however, was much more difficult.

Among the Kurds, I believe women have been recognized to a greater extent. They have had a stronger presence in both governance and in guiding society.

The Kurdish women’s movement, especially in Rojava, advocates for a radical democracy. What does this mean in concrete terms for women in their daily lives?

As I mentioned earlier, this does not apply to the majority of women, because many still live in highly patriarchal rural societies. However, there are pioneering women's movements within society that seek change, aim to introduce new rules, demand more freedom and autonomy, and want to organize their own lives as women. These women do not want to remain solely dependent on family or community structures. In many of these regions, tribal systems are still very strong, which makes the situation even more challenging for women. The extended family and tribal networks play a central role in daily life. Despite this, over time, women have managed to claim their own space.

How have the ideas of Kurdish people's leader Abdullah Öcalan influenced the position of women in Kurdish political projects?

I believe there are political directions that have greatly benefited women. When women’s rights and their role in society are acknowledged, it becomes much easier for them to make progress in their struggles.

 This is not only about armed resistance. Civil resistance also plays an important role, and recognizing women's presence at every level of society, both locally and regionally, is vital. In particular, there is still much to be done at the local level to improve the situation of women in rural areas.

What I focus on most is how women have joined armed struggles, and how they did so in response to a specific threat, namely extremist movements that sought to push women back into the darkness of the Middle Ages. These fundamentalist ideologies and structures tried to confine women to the home and reduce them to a role defined only by reproduction, excluding them from social life.

Kurdish women rejected this reactionary ideology. They fought back not only with weapons, but also by pushing for social transformation, trying to change this mentality through their resistance.

The slogan "Jin, jiyan, azadî" has become widely known in recent years. It resonated globally, especially after the killing of Jina Amini in Iran. What would you like to say about the resistance of women in Iran?

Yes, the situation of women in Iran is extremely difficult, but they are incredibly brave. They took to the streets during a time of intense repression.

The killing of Jina Amini sparked a powerful movement that gained widespread support from large parts of society. This uprising is also the result of a regime that suppresses women, prevents them from speaking freely and forces them to wear the headscarf. In Iran, the headscarf is a symbol. It represents obedience and repression.

When women remove their headscarves, it becomes a form of rebellion. This was also true in the early 20th century in the Middle East in places like Syria, Iraq and Egypt, or even during the Ottoman period. Removing the headscarf has long been a symbol of resisting submission and domination.

Today, although the headscarf remains compulsory, women have taken it off and have faced severe repression. These brutal crackdowns have weakened the protests but have not ended them. Women continue to fight and are trying to create change. But this is not easy because the current regime was built over many years and rests on very strong foundations. Their struggle is extremely difficult, and I wish them great courage.

Can we say that the ties between women's movements in the Middle East and those in the West have grown stronger? Or is there any such connection at all?

Absolutely. The struggle of women is a universal one. The struggle of women in the Middle East is not fundamentally different from that in the West. The goals are shared. Even if the problems are not exactly the same, the fight for rights is the same.

Everywhere, women want their existence to be acknowledged, their place in society to be accepted and their participation to be ensured on equal terms, whether in working life, politics or other areas. That is why I believe the struggle is one and the same. It took a long time for women to gain rights in the West. In the Middle East, it may take longer, but we can say that the movement continues and is making progress, even if slowly. We cannot say it always moves forward, because different situations can arise. But from a historical perspective, we can say there has been progress.

On the battlefield, we often see that occupying forces deliberately target women first, as in Kurdistan, Palestine or Syria. Is this targeting of women a conscious strategy?

Yes, because the way to weaken a society is by weakening its women and their rights. What do radical fundamentalist groups do when they come to power? Take the example of the Taliban. They ban girls from going to school, prevent women from working, impose the wearing of the veil, force child marriages and do not allow women to leave their homes.

Attacking women means dragging the whole society backwards. When women are targeted, the face of society clearly changes. It stops progressing and begins to regress. A balanced and progressive society, one in which people can fulfill themselves, is only possible when women have the place they deserve. Women play a major role in the education of children and in shaping new generations. Of course, men do too, but the contribution of women is essential. This is why the recognition of women's rights is vital for the future of any society.

As you know, after the fall of the Assad regime, the jihadist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) took control in parts of Syria. What kind of threat does this pose for Syrian women?

In Syria, policies towards women remain unclear and the general uncertainty in the country continues. I believe there is still no clear or consistent approach when it comes to women’s rights.

The ruling power appears somewhat willing to recognize women's rights, but the pressure created by jihadist ideology is still deeply felt, and we cannot ignore that. This pressure continues to exist. There are also contradictions within the ruling structure itself. Some individuals have expressed views against women's rights, while the leader, Ahmed Al-Sharaa (Al-Jolani), seems to promote the idea of building a more progressive society where women can enjoy their rights. I hope that meaningful progress will be made in this direction in the future.

Can the rights gained by women in Rojava serve as an example for the future of Syrian women?

Yes, I believe they can, especially in terms of how Kurdish women have gained rights through civil struggle and have resisted oppression and imposed obedience. In this regard, their efforts can serve as an important example.

Who is Nelly Jazra?

Dr. Nelly Jazra is a Lebanese researcher and author specializing in women’s rights and political dynamics in the Middle East and Mediterranean countries. She holds a PhD in economics and works as an expert on various projects under the European Commission.

Dr. Jazra focuses particularly on civil rights and the role of women in political life in Arab countries. She also critically examines Europe’s gender policies in the Middle East.

Selected works by Dr. Nelly Jazra include:

Combats des Femmes (The Struggle of Women)

Les Mouvements Sociaux: Liban-Irak-Algérie (Social Movements: Lebanon-Iraq-Algeria)

Femmes dans les printemps arabes (Women in the Arab Spring)