The Statistics Behind the Deaths
Every third day, a woman is killed by her intimate or former partner. These are not abstract statistics—they represent 155 dead women in Germany alone in 2023, and they reveal a structural problem that politics and society have long ignored.
Zohra Gul's Case Symbolizes System Failure
In April 2026, activists remembered Zohra Gul, murdered by her ex-partner four years earlier at the corner of Mühlenstraße and Maximilianstraße in Berlin-Pankow. Her case is not an isolated tragedy—it illustrates what the statistics map out: the deadliest danger to women is not a stranger on the street, but the man at home.
Zohra Gul's death could have been prevented. Like so many other femicide cases, reality reveals nothing but systemic failure.
Critical Shortage of Shelter Spaces
Numbers from 2025 tell a shameful story: while only 9 women in danger could be housed in crisis shelters, 163 were turned away—there was simply no space. Meanwhile, counseling centers conducted over 1,300 anti-violence sessions, a clear sign of massive demand for support.
Despite economic strength, Germany has among Western Europe's highest rates of intimate partner violence. New violence protection laws introduced in 2025 demonstrate political awareness, but practical implementation lags far behind actual need.
The Escalation Pattern Is Known
Femicides rarely happen by chance. They follow a classic pattern: preceding domestic violence, control, threats after separation. The statistics are crystal clear—separation is the most dangerous period. When a man loses control, it becomes life-threatening.
Perpetrators come from all social backgrounds and education levels. What connects them is not their background or economics, but patriarchal ownership mentality and inability to accept rejection.
Laws Without Action
Germany has technically adapted to international standards through new violence protection laws, but funding for implementation is missing. Crisis shelters are chronically underfunded. Perpetrator programs and prevention efforts don't reach across the country.
Remembering Zohra Gul is more than nostalgia—it is an indictment of a system that treats violence against women as a marginal problem. As long as shelter spaces are lacking and efforts remain insufficient, the statistics remain deadly.
Society's Responsibility
The 155 femicides in 2023 are 155 preventable deaths. Better protection, stricter sentencing, and public awareness could have saved them all. The memory of Zohra Gul must translate into political action—more shelter spaces, better perpetrator programs, tougher legislation, and a society that names violence against women for what it is: a systemic problem.
