UN finally says ‘reasonable grounds’ to believe that Hamas committed rape, ‘sexualized torture’ on Oct. 7
The UN has finally acknowledged that Hamas terrorists committed rape and “sexualized torture” during the Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel — after months of near-silence on the issue.
A UN envoy said Monday there are “reasonable grounds” to believe that the sexual violence occurred — something witnesses, survivors and the Israeli government have spoken out about since the early days of the attacks.
The UN report said there is further evidence that Hamas may still be committing similar atrocities.
Also on Monday, Israel ramped up its criticism of the embattled UN agency for Palestinian refugees, saying 450 of its employees were members of militant groups in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli officials did not provide evidence to back up its accusation.
Major international funders have withheld hundreds of millions of dollars from the agency, known as UNRWA, since Israel accused 12 employees of participating in the Hamas attacks on Israel.
To investigate claims that Hamas used sexual violence against Israelis, a U.N. team visited Israel and the West Bank from Jan. 29 to Feb. 14.
The team said it “found clear and convincing information” that in addition to victims being brutalized on Oct. 7, some of the hostages taken prisoner by Hamas may have been subjected to the inhumane sexual violence.
The bombshell report was published just days before the five-month anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks, in which about 1,200 Israelis were killed and some 260 were taken hostage by terrorists.
Israel has since unleashed wave after wave of punishing retaliatory strikes, relentlessly pummeling Gaza by air and land, which has killed some 30,000 people so far, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Hamas has long denied allegations that the militant group commits acts of sexual violence.
As the war enters its sixth month, a dire humanitarian crisis is unfolding for Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, of whom the UN estimates one-quarter are facing starvation.
Pramila Patten, a member of the UN team, said the envoy was unable to meet with any sexual violence victims “despite concerted efforts to encourage them to come forward.”
Patten said the team found grisly evidence that ultimately supported its conclusion, including “several naked or partially naked bodies from the waist down were recovered — mostly women — with hands tied and shot multiple times, often in the head,” AP writes.
The way the bodies were undressed and tied up, Patten said, “may be indicative of some forms of sexual violence.”
At the infamous Nova music festival held in Re’im, Israel, where hundreds of revelers were massacred by militants, Patten again said the envoy found “reasonable grounds” that some victims had been sexually brutalized.
Through observation and “credible information” obtained through witness accounts, the report said evidence points to the festival grounds and the immediate surrounding area being the site of horrendous acts of sexual violence, including “rape and/or gang rape” and instances where victims were killed while being raped.
The team also discovered nude or partly naked bodies along Road 232, the route to exit the festival grounds, “in some cases tied to structures including trees and poles.”
The envoy was also able to disprove “at least two” allegations of sexual violence that garnered widespread media attention when new information came to light.
This included an apocryphal allegation about a pregnant woman whose womb was cut open before she was killed and her fetus stabbed to death.
— With Post wires
