A woman is killed or nearly killed by a man every two and a half days in Romania

Romanians marked International Women’s Day on Sunday, March 8, paying tribute to the essential roles that women play in society. However, official data shows that 66 femicides took place in Romania last year. At least another 69 women were close to being killed. In total, a man tried to kill or killed a woman every 2.5 days in Romania in 2025, according to the latest responses obtained by investigative journalists at Snoop.ro.

Femicide is the intentional killing of a woman or girl. Most often, femicides are committed by a man or by a partner, as a result of feelings of hatred or as a result of structural gender inequalities.

The record is kept by NGOs and the national press, since the authorities do not monitor femicides in particular. Most women were killed last year in Buzău County (5), followed by the counties of Prahova, Brăila, Bacău, and Maramureș (4 each), and Constanța, Iași, and Neamț (3 each).

Experts say that such serious cases take place in a context of abuse. “There cannot be a spontaneous conflict between intimate partners; there is a history there,” said Ecaterina Balica, researcher within the Institute of Sociology of the Romanian Academy and coordinator of ORAPO.

Six femicides have already taken place in 2026. Most of them were in Iași, the county with the most attempts in 2025.

In Romania, femicides are not recognized as a separate offense, but a project is on track for approval in the Romanian Parliament. Many of the crimes or attempts were accompanied by extreme violence. However, numerous attempts are not reported by the victims due to fear, shame, or distrust of authorities.

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