וַיִּפְנ֞וּ לִפְנֵ֨י אִ֤ישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ אֶל־דֶּ֣רֶךְ הַמִּדְבָּ֔ר וְהַמִּלְחָמָ֖ה הִדְבִּיקָ֑תְהוּ וַֽאֲשֶׁר֙ מֵהֶ֣עָרִ֔ים מַשְׁחִיתִ֥ים אוֹת֖וֹ בְּתוֹכֽוֹ׃
They retreated before Israel’s side along the road to the wilderness, where the fighting caught up with them; meanwhile those from the towns were massacring them in it.
(The above rendering comes from the RJPS translation—an adaptation of the NJPS translation—showing a slight modification projected for October 2023. Before accounting for this rendering, I will analyze the plain sense of the Hebrew term containing אִישׁ.)
See my comment at v. 36.
As for rendering into English, the NJPS ‘the men of Israel’ recognizes a collective usage, but without a situational orientation. See my comment at Josh 10:24. Meanwhile, the fact that women are not in view can go without saying, because it is self-evident from the military context.