The “Wartime Formation” tells the story of Iranian women’s efforts in the humanitarian and resistance arenas.
In a time of social, cultural, and humanitarian crises, lived experiences show that individual and collective efforts, even at a small scale, can leave a huge impact on people’s lives. These actions open new paths for solidarity with the vulnerable, and documenting them provides insight into how ordinary people take part in meaningful change.
Women’s narratives carry unique weight, as they often highlight details, limitations, and the effects of their actions on both family and community. Such storytelling, allows readers to connect with real people and to see how individual motivation can evolve into collective social action.
The book Arayesh Jangi (“Wartime Formation”) is one such effort, built on detailed accounts of women’s participation in different arenas of resistance and humanitarian work. Its author, Maryam Borzoui, sat down with Mehr News Agency to discuss what motivated her to write this book.
The title of the book, she explains, is rooted in Imam Khomeini’s words that “our war is a war of faith, and it has no borders.” For Borzoui, this vision frames the role of the Iranian Muslim woman as one who is always prepared for confrontation, whether on physical frontiers or in cultural and social fronts. War, she notes, may take a military form, but it can also manifest through support work, civic engagement, or humanitarian initiatives. In each case, all available resources need to be mobilized.
At the heart of her interviews lies a central question: “What can I do?” Borzoui explains that this question came from women of all backgrounds, whether doctors, tailors, students, or homemakers. The strength of the book, she says, is that each woman contributes according to her own abilities and circumstances, from basic support tasks to professional efforts and humanitarian missions.
Some of the accounts describe women from Khuzestan, Ahvaz, Bushehr, and Shiraz traveling to Lebanon to aid women and children affected by war. Depending on the situation, they stayed for a week or a month, organizing educational and recreational programs for children, while also teaching knitting classes for women to help them find both distraction and income. The aim was to reduce psychological pressure and bring a measure of calm to war-stricken families.
Borzoui concludes that the book is based entirely on fact. Its purpose is to preserve the oral history of Iranian women so that future generations cannot deny or distort their role. She also believes the book can be translated to carry the message of Iranian women’s participation to broader audiences across the Resistance Front. “When the world reads the stories of the women of Resistance, they will be encouraged and the movement lives on.”
MNA