Major Abhilasha Barak, an Indian Army officer serving with the United Nations mission in Lebanon, is selected to receive the UN’s 2025 Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award. Multiple reports say the award recognizes her efforts related to outreach to women and girls and gender sensitisation activities carried out during her deployment in the West Asian country. The Indian Permanent Mission to the UN states that Barak is being recognized for community engagement for women and adolescent girls and for conducting gender sensitisation training for peacekeepers.
Barak serves with the Indian Battalion and commands the Female Engagement Team (FET) in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The Business Standard report also notes that she is the first woman combat helicopter pilot of the Indian Army. Both outlets describe her UN role as central to the award recognition. She is set to be honoured at UN headquarters, following the selection for the 2025 award.
