A/HRC/45/CRP.7 1. Gender Analysis 187. The armed conflict has affected women, girls, men and boys differently. Yemeni society was already patriarchal and many women and girls, particularly those from minority groups or rural communities, and those with a non-conforming sexual orientation and/or gender identity (SOGI) lived in profoundly unequal and dangerous situations. The actions of the parties to the conflict have exacerbated this situation by exploiting gender norms in furtherance of their objectives. In 2019, the Group of Experts presented a Gender Analysis of the conflict, which complements this section.263 During the reporting period, the Group conducted deeper investigations into various forms of gender-based violence, four of which will be detailed in this section. The Group also continued documenting violations against women human rights defenders, activists and journalists, and received allegations of genderbased violence violations occurring in the course of recruitment and use of children by some parties to the conflict.264 188. In 2019-2020, figures show that the majority of direct casualties from fighting continue to be men and boys.265 The humanitarian crisis has worsened health care, access to food, nutrition and secure housing, affecting primarily women and girls and putting them at higher risk of enduring some form of gender-based violence, mainly those displaced.266 Additional economic burdens were borne by some women and girls who became, by virtue of the conflict, their families’ bread winners. Some parties to the conflict recruited into their forces men and boys as fighters using, inter alia, religious and patriarchal discourses, as well as financial incentives as explained in Section F (See paras. 273 and ff). 189. In 2019-2020, women continued to participate in the security sector, as they have since prior to the conflict. For instance, the Zainbiyat267 forces continued operating in areas under the control of the de facto authorities. These forces include women and girls who joined for financial gain or personal reasons. The Group received credible reports that the de facto authorities indoctrinated and recruited girls to join the Zainabiyat from schools, detention facilities, Houthi-affiliated families and poor families as detailed in Section F (See paras. 273 and ff).268 Additionally, in 2020, there were media outlet reports of new female security forces, namely the “al-Fatimiat” linked to the de facto authorities, and the “Female Special Forces” linked to military forces in Aden.269 190. The criminal justice system is unable to deal with conflict-related violations.270 Some law enforcement actors, armed forces and armed groups continued to pose a direct threat to the population. In particular, in some governorates, women found it easier and more reliable to access informal community conflict-resolution mechanisms to address their security concerns.271 263 See A/HRC/42/CRP.1, Chapter VII. See the Treatment of specific groups and Child Recruitment and Use and Related Violations sections. 265 See WHO Yemen: Snapshot of Reported Deaths and Injuries, May 2020. 266 According to UNFPA, with limited shelter options, displaced women and girls tend to suffer most from lack of privacy, threats to safety and limited access to basic services, making them ever more vulnerable to violence and abuse. Displaced girls are more likely to lose access to schooling as families with limited resources de-prioritise their right to education. See UNFPA Humanitarian Response in Yemen 2020, available at: https://www.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/resource-pdf/English__2019_UNFPA_Response_brochure_-_final_for_Web-compressed.pdf 267 The Zainabiyat are Houthi-organized women’s security groups, trained to support the Houthis through, inter alia, indoctrination of women and girls in Houthi ideology, maintaining order in detention facilities and conducting law enforcement activities. 268 See the section on Child Recruitment and Use and Related Violations. 269 See, for instance, www.yemen14.com/3345 and www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbU37lo5fV4 270 See Accountability section. See also A/HRC/42/CRP.1, Chapter VII, paras. 634-636. 271 Confidential Sources on file. See, for instance, Yemen Polling Center, Policy Report 2020: Gendered Security Gender-based Violence and Women’s Access to State and Nonstate Security Provision in al-Dhali’, April 2020, available at: 264 52