Two Women. Two War Zones. One Powerful Message: UN Honours Its Finest Peacekeepers of 2025
New Delhi, 10th June 2026: On the 5th of June, as the world observed the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, the United Nations did not just mark a date on the calendar. It put two women at the centre of the ceremony and told the world exactly what modern peacekeeping looks like when done right.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres presented the 2025 UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award to Major Abhilasha Barak of India, and the UN Woman Police Officer of the Year Award to Inspector Stephanie Königs of Germany ; two peacekeepers who served in two different conflict zones and left a visible mark on both.
Major Abhilasha Barak : Lebanon
Major Abhilasha Barak, an Indian Army officer and the country’s first woman combat helicopter pilot, served with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) as the Engagement Team Commander and Gender Focal Point. Operating in a high-risk zone, she carried out a record-breaking 539 gender-focused field activities in just six months, reaching over 5,000 local women through health, education, and vocational support.
Her work went well beyond community outreach. She led all-women security patrols to build trust during high-tension periods, established the Lebanon Gender Initiative an AI-driven platform for reporting gender-based violence and secured 75 ITEC scholarships for Lebanese women to access technical training.
Major Barak is the third Indian peacekeeper to receive this honour, following Major Suman Gawani who was recognised for her work in South Sudan in 2019, and Major Radhika Sen who received the 2023 award for her service in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Speaking at the ceremony, she offered a line that carried the weight of her entire journey “Dreams don’t have a gender.”
Inspector Stephanie Königs : South Sudan
Inspector Stephanie Königs served with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) from September 2024 to March 2026, working as a Police Adviser and Patrol Team Leader within the mission’s police component. During a period of heightened political sensitivity and restricted movement in Juba, she led negotiations with national security forces in some of the most difficult operational conditions of the mission.
Her leadership helped reinforce early-warning mechanisms that supported vital decision-making during periods of crisis. Reflecting on what drives her work, Inspector Königs has said: “Doing the right thing – trying to do the right thing – this is the reason why I became a police officer to help people and to help those who need help.”
Inspector Königs is attached to the Rhein-Kreis district police authority in Germany and brings over 13 years of policing experience to her work, including a prior international deployment with the EU observer mission in Georgia. At the ceremony, she echoed Major Barak’s call to action, urging her women colleagues: “We need you and we need you in operational leadership positions.”
Together, these two women represent something the UN has been working to demonstrate for years that women in peacekeeping are not a symbolic addition. They are operationally essential, and the evidence from Lebanon and South Sudan proves it beyond any argument.
