Statement of Solidarity with Syrian Women Writers Facing Defamation and Incitement Campaigns

The Women Writers Committee at PEN Syria expresses its grave concern over the escalating campaigns of defamation, incitement, and threats targeting Syrian women writers, journalists, and intellectuals who continue to address issues of justice and human rights, document violations, and demand accountability. Despite the digital violence, moral harassment, and systematic attempts to silence and exclude them from public space, they continue to raise their voices and defend these fundamental values.

In a statement issued in March we warned of a growing pattern of increasing attacks targeting women writers [see link]. These campaigns have not subsided; rather, they have become more organised and more aggressive, directed at every woman who refuses silence and insists on her right to freedom of expression. The attacks against Syrian women writers, including Rosa Yassin Hassan, Reem Failyhan, Alaa Amer, Sawsan Zakzak, Nour Al-Ahmad, Huda Abu Nabut, and others, form part of coordinated efforts of defamation, vilification, incitement, hate speech, and intimidation. These campaigns rely on gender-based stereotypes and discriminatory narratives targeting women because of their gender or perceived affiliations. They weaponise digital violence to exclude women from the public sphere and coerce them into silence, rather than engaging in the legitimate disagreement and criticism that are essential to democratic debate.

The severity of these campaigns is compounded by the absence of effective accountability on the part of the transitional governing authorities, their failure to address acts of incitement, threats, and defamation, and the continued proliferation of hate speech. This has created an environment in which perpetrators act with a sense of impunity, while women are left to face intimidation and violence alone. Failure to publicly condemn and effectively respond to these practices only reinforces a climate that allows them to persist and escalate.

Freedom of opinion and expression is a fundamental right guaranteed under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The full and equal participation of women in political, cultural, and public life is likewise affirmed in United Nations resolutions, particularly Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security.

In light of the above, the Women Writers Committee at PEN Syria declares its full solidarity with all Syrian women writers, journalists, and intellectuals who are subjected to defamation, incitement, or threats because of their opinions or writings. We:

1. Condemn all forms of digital violence, hate speech, and incitement based on gender, religious, political, or ethnic affiliation, and reject their use as tools to exclude women from public space.

1. Call upon Syrian, Arab, and international women’s, human rights, and cultural organisations, writers’ unions, publishing houses, and freedom of expression groups to express solidarity with the targeted women writers and to reject any normalisation of or silence towards such campaigns.
2. Urge the international community, including organisations concerned with women’s rights, freedom of expression, and human rights, to closely monitor the situation of Syrian women writers, document the violations they face. In this regard, we call for the establishment of effective protection mechanisms and for sustained pressure on the transitional governing authorities to fulfil their legal and moral responsibilities to stop hate speech, threats, and incitement, and to ensure accountability for perpetrators.
3. Affirm that the effective implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, and the guarantee of full and equal participation of women in political, cultural, and public life, constitute essential conditions for any genuine democratic transition in Syria.

The continued targeting of Syrian women writers reflects an ongoing attempt to exclude women from the public sphere and subject free expression to fear. Societies that silence their women silence their own future. The Women Writers Committee at PEN Syria will continue to stand with every woman defending her right to write and speak freely, because the future of Syria cannot be built on silence, but only on the full recognition of women’s right to participate, express themselves, and shape that future.

Women Writers Committee – PEN Syria
03.07.2026