More than 250 women from 17 countries across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) gathered in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî) on 15-17 May for the first congress of the Regional Democratic Women’s Coalition (NADA), vowing to deepen transnational solidarity in the face of war, patriarchy, and state violence.
Under the banner ‘Towards a Democratic Society Based on the Women’s Revolution’, participants from countries including Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Sudan, Iran, and Turkey debated the impacts of authoritarianism, environmental destruction, and systemic violence on women’s lives.
In an interview with Ceylan Şahinli of Mezopotamya Agency, Ebîr Hasaf, a member of the Women’s Council of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) and NADA delegate, described the congress as “a historic moment for collective resistance”.
“We are living through the peak of a Third World War,” she said. “While these crises deepen, we must build joint responses. That’s why 250 women met in Sulaymaniyah—to explore the roots of the crises and to map out ways forward.”
Workshops focused on women’s roles in creating democratic societies, resisting ecological devastation, and confronting violence tied to nationalism and patriarchal state structures. Hasaf emphasised that discussions addressed how women’s bodies and ecologies are jointly targeted in war zones, and how communities can reclaim autonomy through grassroots organising.
A central reference point in the final declaration was the political philosophy of imprisoned Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, whose ideas on democratic confederalism were cited as “visionary” by Hasaf.
“We believe Öcalan’s proposals help us rethink peace and collective life. Women gain strength from each other, and our struggles—despite geographic distance—are profoundly similar,” she said.
NADA emerged from a decade-long process beginning with a 2013 women’s conference in Diyarbakır (Amed), followed by a major assembly in Beirut in 2021. The coalition’s aim is to build enduring networks of solidarity that challenge borders, militarism, and oppression from below.
“We are moving from shared pain toward shared strength,” Hasaf said. “This is just the beginning.”
