The conflict in Syria has led to a demographic change leading to a bigger number of female heads of households.846 The situation of women living alone has not improved since the fall of the Assad regime.847 Female-headed households face significant challenges in accessing basic services, including economic constraints848 and social stigma.849 UNOCHA noted that female-headed households continue to face disproportionately low levels of food security.850
Female-headed households, including single and widowed women, face difficulties in securing housing due to restrictive societal norms,851 discriminatory inheritance laws,852 and a lack of property documentation,853 compounded by accommodation-related costs and limited employment opportunities.854 This was indicated as a significant obstacle to the return of female-headed households,855 as they often have to rely on family network to sustain themselves.856 UNOCHA highlighted that women heads of household face heightened risk of GBV and exposure to exploitation.857
Women whose husbands are missing faced severe administrative issues.858 Barriers to access documents proving the death or disappearance of their husbands led to economic and legal ambiguity and hindered their access to inheritance,859 as well as custody and documentation for their children.860 Many women heads of households faced difficulties registering their children’s births,861 particularly those who were married to foreign nationals and often lack legal proof of marriage.862
- 846
Netherlands (The), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, General Country of Origin Information Report on Syria, January 2026, url, p. 114; Atlantic Council, What will minority and women’s rights look like in the new Syria?, 20 December 2024, url
- 847
Netherlands (The), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, General Country of Origin Information Report on Syria, January 2026, url, p. 114; DK, DIS, Syria: Situation of Certain Groups, December 2025, url, p. 46
- 848
UNOCHA, Syrian Arab Republic: Humanitarian needs and response plan, 2 April 2026, url, pp. 37, 49; UNHCR, Coming Home: One Year Into Syria’s Transition, 11 December 2025, url, p. 15
- 849
GPC, Protection Landscape in Syria – A Snapshot: March 2025, 3 April 2025, url, p. 5
- 850
UNOCHA, Syrian Arab Republic: Humanitarian needs and response plan, 2 April 2026, url, pp. 5, 30
- 851
UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, 12 March 2026, url, para. 61; DK, DIS, Syria: Situation of Certain Groups, December 2025, url, pp. 46, 47
- 852
UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, 12 March 2026, url, para. 61
- 853
Netherlands (The), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, General Country of Origin Information Report on Syria, January 2026, url, p. 114
- 854
DK, DIS, Syria: Situation of Certain Groups, December 2025, url, p. 47
- 855
UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, 12 March 2026, url, para. 61
- 856
DK, DIS, Syria: Situation of Certain Groups, December 2025, url, pp. 46, 47
- 857
UNOCHA, Syrian Arab Republic: Humanitarian needs and response plan, 2 April 2026, url, pp. 11, 38
- 858
DW, Syria: Wives of missing men push for legal reform, 27 March 2026, url; DK, DIS, Syria: Situation of Certain Groups, December 2025, url, p. 46
- 859
DW, Syria: Wives of missing men push for legal reform27 March 2026, url; Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (The), Wives of the Disappeared in Syria: Voices in Legal Limbo, 10 December 2025, url
- 860
DW, Syria: Wives of missing men push for legal reform27 March 2026, url
- 861
HRW, World Report 2025 - Syria, 16 January 2025, url
- 862
DK, DIS, Syria: Situation of Certain Groups, December 2025, url, p. 46