Gaza
Child marriage surges in Gaza amid war and displacement
Image credit: Mondoweiss
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Marriages involving girls under 18 have reached 20.6% of recent unions in Gaza, according to Mondoweiss, as the territory faces widespread hunger, displacement, and the breakdown of legal protections. Families are pushing daughters into early marriage as a survival strategy in conditions of extreme deprivation, with the practice framed as a means of safeguarding young women in the absence of functional institutions.
The collapse of governance and economic systems has eliminated enforcement mechanisms that once deterred child marriage. Girls are losing educational and developmental opportunities as the crisis deepens, with families viewing wedlock as a response to food insecurity and the dangers of displacement rather than as a violation of their rights.
