; and (B) occur in parallel to sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated as a weapon of war. (6) Gender-based violence is underreported in all settings. Recorded cases of gender-based violence represent only a small fraction of the overall total. A lack of available data should not be interpreted to mean that gender-based violence is not a major and pressing issue, but should be viewed as an indication of the challenges in gathering information. (7) Rape and sexual assault have been used as tactics of war and terror in conflict zones, including Burma, Central African Republic, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Syria. (8) Rape, sexual slavery, and other forms of sexual violence have been used by terrorist and extremist groups, such as the so-called Islamic State, Boko Haram, and the Lord’s Resistance Army, to intimidate and terrorize communities. (9) Sexual and gender-based violence in recent conflicts has been used in Iraq, Syria, and Burma as a form of ethnic or religious persecution or genocide against Yazidis, Christians, Turkmen Shi’a, and Rohingya Muslims. (10) The Secretary-General of the United Nations stated that sexual violence in conflict triggers mass migration and forced displacement. (11) Sexual and gender-based violence in conflict is primarily used against women and girls, but can also be used against men and boys. (12) Sexual and gender-based violence is not incidental to conflict and is a weapon of choice for armed actors seeking to destabilize societies, given that its stigma and trauma continue after the conflict has ended. (13) Existing laws often fail to protect survivors of conflict-related sexual or gender-based violence, especially when the perpetrators are representatives of government entities, such as military officers, soldiers, or non-state actors operating in areas where governments have failed to keep the peace. (14) Under the doctrine of military command responsibility, leaders can be prosecuted for war crimes when they— (A)