Description
A growing body of conflict scholarship examines the mechanisms through which armed group ideology influences combatant perceptions of social in-groups and out-groups and, in turn, their violent behavior. These studies elucidate why certain groups are subject to violence and not others, yet they often take for granted the characteristics of violence itself. Why, in some cases, do armed groups target different out-groups with divergent patterns of violence or with more extreme forms of violence than others? And why are certain people within out-groups, such as women, subject to unique violence? This article highlights that social relationships are far more complex than simply demarcating ‘us’ and ‘them,’ emphasizing that hierarchies also exist within these in- and out-groups. Ideology may influence how combatants collectively understand these hierarchies and, as a result, impact what forms of violence are considered ‘appropriate’ against sub-communities within out-groups. Adopting a relational understanding of violence allows us to recognize how particular forms of violence take on different (and often intersectional) ideological and normative frames, depending on whom they target. I substantiate these claims with evidence from two armed groups that have engaged in conflict-related sexual violence: the FARC in Colombia and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
