This is the February 2024 update to the guide I originally published on November 23, 2023 – link here. The initial guide had 8 pertinent sources on this topic comprising government reports, academic papers, reviews of UN/NGO programs, news, databases, analysis and commentary. Part 2 of this series, posted December 31, 2023 – link is here expanded the original guide with more than a dozen new sources.
This update comprises primary government sources and secondary news sources and more extensive video footage as well as eye witness testimony to expand knowledge on the topic as well as to ensure accurate research about the atrocities committed on October 7, 2023. It includes research and more than a dozen additional sources from interviews, reports and ongoing investigations identifying critical facts about the planning and systemic use of violence against women and girls during, and subsequent to, the October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks. 136 hostages remain in Gaza [141 days of captivity] with recent confirmation that of this number, 31 are dead. Hamas and others in Gaza have possession of the bodies of the deceased whose cause of death (murder on October 7, 2023 or while in captivity in Gaza) has yet to be established by Israel.
*Content Warning – Please be advised that some of the following abstracts, reports and articles contain graphic details about the physical, sexual, emotional and psychological gender violence used against women and girls [and men] on October 7, 2023.
Books
[Abstracts and tables of contents free – Nijhoff Law Specials] – Sex and Gender Crimes in the New International Law Past, Present, Future Series: Nijhoff Law Specials, Volume: 75 Alona Hagay-Frey In times of conflict, women have traditionally been excluded from protection of the law. This book analyzes the treatment of sex and gender crimes under international law by identifying various legal eras, from the inception of international… See More
U.S. Congress – Legislation
Rep. Frankel Statement After House Passes Resolution Condemning Rape and Sexual Violence Committed by Hamas Washington, DC, February 14, 2024: Today, Congresswoman Lois Frankel (D-FL-22) released the following statement after the House voted unanimously to pass a bipartisan resolution condemning the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, including those acts committed by Hamas terrorists on and since October 7th. Rep. Frankel introduced the resolution alongside Reps. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-FL-26), Kathy Manning (D-NC-06), and Jen Kiggans (R-VA-02), with 200 total co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle.
“On October 7th, Hamas terrorists attacked Israel, mercilessly killing 1,200 people; raping, mutilating, burning, and assaulting their victims to inflict physical and psychological pain, unleashing trauma that continues to plague a grieving Israel. The brutality was planned and calculated,” said Rep. Frankel. “Sadly, Hamas’s savagery has been met with a shrug—and even denial—from many corners of the world. Our resolution loudly and clearly condemns all rape and forms of sexual violence as weapons of war, including those acts committed by Hamas terrorists on and since October 7th.”
“The U.S. Congress stands in strong, bipartisan solidarity with the victims of terrorism and sexual violence. Hamas’ atrocities were shocking in their depravity, and this resolution roundly condemns the hatred, antisemitism, and cruelty of October 7th,” said Rep. Díaz-Balart. “It’s an honor to work with my colleague, Lois Frankel, to hold Hamas terrorists accountable, and for supporting the victims by telling the truth of the horrors that they endured.”
“On October 7th, Hamas terrorists used brutal sexual violence as a weapon of war to inflict physical, emotional, and psychological trauma on women and girls in Israel. I’m heartbroken, outraged, and devastated for the victims and survivors,” said Rep. Manning. “I led this resolution to unequivocally condemn these atrocities, call on all international bodies to hold the perpetrators accountable, and reaffirm my commitment to supporting survivors of sexual violence. I’m proud that a bipartisan majority of Representatives voted to pass this important resolution.”
“The acts of sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists during their unprovoked October 7th attack are shocking and truly horrifying,” said Rep. Kiggans. “I’m appalled that these atrocities are being used as tools of war. As a woman serving in Congress, I believe it is my duty to use my voice to condemn such sickening violence. Today’s strong bipartisan vote sends a clear message that the United States stands against the despicable acts committed by Hamas terrorists against women and girls in Israel.”
Israeli authorities have gathered “tens of thousands” of testimonies detailing sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas on October 7th. Additionally, a New York Times investigation uncovered more horrific stories, including eyewitness accounts of “more than 30 bodies of women and girls in and around the [music festival] site…legs spread, clothes torn off, signs of abuse in their genital areas,” a woman’s corpse with “dozens of nails driven into her thighs and groin,” a woman “shredded into pieces,” a woman’s breast sliced with a box cutter and thrown into the street—among numerous other grisly reports. The investigation establishes that the attacks against women were, “not isolated events but part of a broader pattern of gender-based violence on Oct. 7th.” Physicians who have examined released hostages have also confirmed that Hamas terrorists sexually abused hostages in captivity, and that it likely continues today.
The resolution:
- Condemns all rape and forms of sexual violence as weapons of war, including those acts committed by Hamas terrorists on and since October 7th;
- Calls on all nations to criminalize rape and sexual assault, and hold accountable all perpetrators of sexual violence, including state and non-state armed groups;
- Calls on all international bodies to unequivocally condemn the barbaric murder, rape, sexual assault, and kidnapping by Hamas and other terrorists on and since October 7th and hold accountable all perpetrators;
- Reaffirms the United States Government’s support for independent, impartial investigations of rape and sexual violence committed by Hamas on and since October 7th; and
- Reaffirms its commitment to supporting survivors of rape and sexual violence, including those brutalized on and since October 7th.
The resolution is supported by the American Jewish Committee (AJC), the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), AIPAC, Foundation of Defense for Democracies (FDD) Action, Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, Jewish Women International (JWI), J Street, National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW), and Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA). For the full text of the resolution, click here. To watch Rep. Frankel’s remarks from the House Floor, click here. The resolution passed unanimously.
ARCCI [Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel] submits first report regarding Hamas October 7 attack to the UN, February 21, 2024. “We took more than 1,000 statements and some of the victims cannot speak due to being in psychological and medical treatment…”The report clearly demonstrates that this is not a “malfunction” or isolated incident but a clear operational strategy involving systematic, targeted sexual abuse. The report focuses on sexual and gender-based violence during the massacre of October 7, 2023, and the war that ensued, serving as a primary testimonial foundation indicating widespread sexual crimes. Orit Sulitzeanu, CEO of the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel, stated, “The report, submitted to decision-makers at the UN, leaves no room for denial or disregard. The terrorist organization Hamas chose to harm Israel strategically in two clear ways – kidnapping citizens and committing sadistic sexual crimes. Silence is no longer an option. We expect international organizations to take a clear stance; we cannot stand on the sidelines. Silence will be remembered as a historical stain on those who chose to remain silent and deny the sexual crimes committed by Hamas.” The report is the first official research since October 7, consolidating evidence and providing conclusions. The report clearly demonstrates that this is not a “malfunction” or isolated incident but a clear operational strategy involving systematic, targeted sexual abuse. The report focuses on sexual and gender-based violence during the massacre of October 7, 2023, and the war that ensued, serving as a primary testimonial foundation indicating widespread sexual crimes. The report was written by, Dr. Carmit Klar Chalamish, head of the research department at the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel, and Noga Berger, director of content at the organization.
Methodology
The report analyzes numerous confidential and public pieces of information, including testimonies, interviews with official and non-official first responders, information permitted for publication in various media outlets, and direct information received by the ARCCI. After gathering the information, a cataloging and analysis process was undertaken to map the areas and patterns of sexual crimes. The report does not provide quantitative information due to the nature of the events, most of which resulted in the victims’ deaths, making their full extent unknown and possibly unknowable.
Findings
The report finds that the Hamas attack included brutal acts of violent rape, often involving threats with weapons, specifically directed towards injured women. Many rape incidents occurred collectively, with collaboration among the perpetrating terrorists. In some cases, rape was conducted in front of an audience, such as partners, family, or friends, to increase the pain and humiliation for all present. Some Hamas members pursued victims who escaped the massacre, dragging them by their hair with screams. The majority of victims were subsequently killed during or after the sexual assault. Several testimonies, interviews, and additional sources indicate the use of sadistic practices by Hamas terrorists, aimed at intensifying the humiliation and fear of sexual abuse. Many victims’ bodies were found mutilated and bound, with sexual organs brutally attacked, and in some cases, weapons were inserted into them. Some bodies were discovered deliberately booby-trapped. It is essential to note that the report details only information from identified sources permitted for publication, while analysis includes additional confidential information that cannot be disclosed publicly.”
Via Twitter, Hen Mazzig, February 23, 2024. Abdallah Abed Elghani is a plastic surgeon who volunteered as an autopsy technician identifying bodies in the horrific aftermath of Hamas’s October 7th attack on Israel. He described working tirelessly to identify bodies in any way possible, often using small scraps of DNA collected from burned bodies, and matching them with possessions provided by victims’ family members. “As an Arab Muslim citizen living in Israel, I dream that there will be peace, because we live here together, and work here together. I hope there will be real peace, and we will all live in peace and security, inside the country and out.”
Jerusalem Post, February 21, 2024. Hamas terrorists forced families to watch loved ones get raped at gunpoint TRIGGER WARNING: Most sexual assault victims of Hamas on October 7 were killed either before or during rape; several victims’ genitals were mutilated beyond recognition.
The Wrap. February 7, 2024. “Screams Before Silence” will detail the experiences of those who were raped and assaulted during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel
Wall Street Journal, February 4, 2024. 53 Days in the Hamas Tunnels: A Hostage’s Story. From pop-culture quizzes to anxious, sleepless nights, Tamar Metzger and other captives leaned on one another to make it through weeks underground in Gaza.
The Independent, February 1, 2024. Traumatised Hamas attack victim ‘pretended to be dead as women shot and raped around her’ . Warning: This story contains disturbing content about rape and sexual violence. A traumatised victim of the Hamas attack on Israel is said to have pretended to be dead as women were shot and raped around her. Mirit Ben Mayor, an Israeli Police Chief Superintendent, recounted the eyewitness’s horrifying testimony at an event at the House of Lords on Wednesday as reports of sexual violence committed by the militants mount. Mayor said the woman was at the Nova music festival on 7 October when Hamas launched its bloody assault on attendees. The eyewitness was forced to pretend to be dead while seeing women “brutally and continually raped”, said the Ch Supt. “She saw a woman raped by a number of terrorists. The last one shot her in the head while still raping her.” Israeli Police are leading its biggest-ever national investigation into the militants’ attack on that day, including into the reports of sexual offences committed. Eyewitness accounts from survivors, first responders and police officers are key to the body of evidence they are building, said Mayor, as the vast majority of the victims of alleged sexual crimes are dead. “There is evidence that rape and sexual violence occurred,” she said, describing its use as a “weapon of war”.
The National Post, February 1, 2024. Einat Wilf: Without UNRWA there would be no Hamas — it must be dismantled – “…UNRWA was established with the best of intentions to help settle the Arab refugees from the war (the much larger number of Jewish refugees, including those from the war and those ethnically cleansed from across the Arab world in retaliation for Israel’s birth, as well as the Jewish refugee survivors from the Holocaust were all absorbed by Israel without any international support). But the Arab refugees and the Arab countries fought against UNRWA resettlement. The agency therefore failed to settle even one Arab refugee. UNRWA’s funders at the time, the U.S. and U.K., wanted to close down the failed agency. There was no question that UNRWA was failing to settle refugees. But the Arab countries would not hear of closing UNRWA. They had already secured the letter UN in its name in order to send the message that Israel’s existence was essentially the fault of the UN. They also secured a legal loophole exception for UNRWA from the UNHCR, knowing that if the Arab refugees would be treated like all other refugees in the world, no refugees would remain within a few short years. The next step then was to ensure that UNRWA remains open and funded by the West. Given the importance of oil and the Arab position in the Cold War the Arab countries successfully threatened the U.S. and U.K. to keep UNRWA open. UNRWA remains open to this day as a still temporary agency, now funded by numerous western countries to a tune of more than one billion dollars a year…”
Via Twitter – miha schwartzenberg @miradulescu. February 2, 2024 [includes video]. 401 young people died at Nova Festival. About a third of the total number of Israeli murdered on #Oct7. Young girls raped, mutilated, grenades thrown in shelters, people executed in their cars or shot in the back, while they were running for their lives. A survivor tells her story.
The New York Times, January 29, 2023. Almost four months after the October 7, 2023 massacre by Hamas, U.N. to Study Reports of Sexual Violence in Israel During Oct. 7 Attack. A team from the United Nations has arrived in Israel to examine multiple reports of sexual violence during the Hamas-led attack.
New York Post, January 24, 2024. Israeli hostages impregnated by Hamas rapists will decide whether to keep babies upon release – Any Israeli hostages who have gotten pregnant from being raped by their Hamas captors in Gaza will have to decide whether to keep their baby or terminate the pregnancy upon their release, according to a new report. Officials with Israel’s Ministries of Welfare and Health are drawing up detailed plans to deal with the possibility of unwanted pregnancies in women who were kidnapped by terrorists after the deadly Oct. 7 attacks, reported the local news outlet Walla! In Israel, a pregnancy termination committee [Abortion is not illegal in Israel and is permitted when determined by a termination committee, with the vast majority of cases being approved as of 2019 typically determines whether to grant an abortion request — but officials are considering bypassing that step to reduce the red tape in the cases of any pregnant former captives. More than 130 Israelis still remain in the clutches of Hamas after nearly four months, including young women and teenage girls, with preliminary information suggesting that some have been subjected to sexual abuse, both during the initial onslaught — as seen in gruesome videos circulating online — and in captivity. Civilian authorities, assisted by the Israel Defense Forces, are creating a program that will coordinate all available resources for treating sexually abused hostages — including women at different stages of pregnancy — who will receive medical and psychological help.]
Via Twitter Elad Simchayoff @Elad_Si European correspondent Channel 12 News. Host “One a Day” January 24, 2024. Adina Moshe (72) is an aspiringly courageous woman. She was abducted from her safe room on 7.10 where she hid with her husband. Before being dragged by two terrorists, she managed to see how they shot her husband point blank. He blew her a kiss before he died. Her abductor snatched her jewellery, a young man on the street took her glasses. She couldn’t see her whole time there. She was taken to a tunnel along other hostages. She recalls how they decided to pass the time by each giving a lecture on his own field of expertise. Alex Dancyg, a renowned historian, spoke about the holocaust, the group asked him to stop as they felt identification. Adina decided to negotiate with the guards. When 5-year-old Emilia Aloni couldn’t stop crying of fear from their weapons, Adina approached the head guard and explained that this group of old hostages wouldn’t pose a risk and asked him to lower the weapons down as the child is frightened. He agreed. A few time during her weeks there, head of Hamas in Gaza, Sinwar, was there. He entered their room and – in Hebrew – asked how they were. The group didn’t answer. When she was told she is being released, Adina argued with the guards and to let other hostages, in worse condition to go home. They declined. She recalls the harrowing moments of release, when hundreds of Gazans threw rocks at the Red Cross car which took them to Egypt. I won’t ever get out of it. She told @N12News
Jerusalem Post, January 19, 2024. Justice must be served for perpetrators of sexual violence – editorial. But the day will come, after all this ends, when we will take Hamas to court for their crimes. That Israeli women were mass raped and gruesomely sexually assaulted and abused by Hamas is known. Time might feel like it has frozen since that Saturday in October. Still, more than three months have passed, and another horrid possibility exists, one that health experts and medical professionals have begun to prepare for: their pregnancies in captivity. Four days after it all began, on October 11, the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel submitted a request to the International Committee of the Red Cross to push for the release of hostages after reports emerged of cases of rape, reports that came straight to the organization. That was three months ago. It is vile, horrifying, nauseating, and sickening even to consider. And the clock continues to tick. These crimes need to be remembered and documented as diligently as possible, because the day this gets to court – and it will – we need to ensure justice is served.
The Guardian, January 18, 2024: Evidence points to systematic use of rape and sexual violence by Hamas in 7 October attacks Guardian aware of sexual assaults for which multiple corroborating pieces of evidence exist.
January 18, 2024. CNN airs Oct. 7 clip from Nir Oz showing ‘evidence of beheadings’ by Hamas – @CNN has obtained new footage from Nir Oz on October 7, of a Hamas terrorist sawing off the heads of his victims with a knife [the photos are of a female victim.]
EURACTIV, January 16, 2024: Feminist NGOs have criticised France, Germany and the Netherlands for blocking the inclusion of consent-based definition of rape in the EU’s directive to combat violence against women as December’s negotiations on the law once again stalled. To mark International Women’s Day on 8 March 2022, the European Commission proposed its directive to combat violence against women in Europe. The Commission’s proposed directive wants to better protect women from gender-based violence, aiming to ban forced marriages, female genital mutilation, sexist cyber-harassment and forced sterilisation. The future law also seeks to establish a common definition of rape in Europe, which would make it a Eurocrime, to harmonise criminal penalties between the 27 member states and better protect victims. While both the Parliament and the Commission supported a consent-based definition of rape, the Council’s mandate completely removed Article 5 which said that a non-consensual sex act is a criminal offence. Therefore now, nearly two years on, the directive is stuck in interinstitutional negotiations between the European Parliament, Council and Commission. In leading the charge against a consent-based definition, France, Germany and the Netherlands are “playing into the hands of ultra-conservative states”, Camille Butin, advocacy officer at the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), told Euractiv. France, Germany and the Netherlands, traditionally considered progressive regarding gender issues, voted against the inclusion of rape in the directive, alongside Poland, Hungary, Malta, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Bulgaria and Slovakia. Every year, more than 100,000 rapes are recorded in the EU, according to the French National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE), with one in five women having suffered physical or sexual violence at the hands of a partner or friend, and three out of ten at the hands of a family member
i24NEWS, Israel prepares for female hostages in Gaza to return pregnant – report. Israel permits abortion up to the moment of birth; medical professionals stress the mental toll of conceiving through rape in captivity. Israeli medical professionals tasked with caring for freed hostages are preparing for the grim likelihood that at least some of the young women held in Gaza are pregnant as a result of rape by Palestinians, according to a report in Hebrew media. The 136 hostages are held by Hamas, other Palestinian factions and some Gazans apparently unaffiliated with any groups. Quite a few of these are young women. The October 7 massacre saw Palestinians commit grisly acts of rape, and testimonies from some of the returned hostages suggested that the women endured sexual abuse in captivity.
The Free Press, January 16, 2023. The Girls I Met in the Tunnels Seventeen-year-old Agam Goldstein-Almog saw Hamas murder her father and sister before her eyes. Then she was taken to Gaza. I was in a dark and damp tunnel deep underground when, in hushed voices, I heard the stories from the young women. Not stories so much as bits and pieces of living nightmares. I was with my mother, my protector, who did everything she could to keep me alive while we were in Hamas’s captivity. Together with my two young brothers, aged nine and eleven, the four of us had been taken from our home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza on the morning of October 7, but not before terrorists shot my father, Nadav, point blank, and afterward went after my older sister, Yam, the bullet tearing through her face.
The New York Times, January 15, 2024. They Thought They Knew Death, but That Didn’t Prepare Them for Oct. 7. Volunteers with ZAKA, an Israeli group that recovers dead bodies, were among the first to reach the victims of the Hamas-led attacks. The trauma of what they witnessed may last a lifetime.
The Silence of the Feminists Honestly with Bari Weiss [Podcast] “One hundred days ago, the world changed. October 7 has proven to be many things: the opening salvo in a brutal war between Israel and Hamas; an attack that could precipitate a broader, regional war; the beginning of a global, ongoing orgy of antisemitism; a wake-up call regarding the rot inside the West’s once-great sensemaking institutions; a possible realignment of our politics. One of the things it has also been is a test. A moral test that many in the West have failed. That test of moral conscience is a continuing one considering there are still 136 hostages in Gaza. Two of them are babies; close to 20 of them are young women. Across the Western world, these hostages have faded from view. And when it comes to the fate of the many young women abducted by Hamas and taken to Gaza, the silence from some corners has been deafening. Today on Honestly, Bari argues that the groups you would expect to care most about these women and hostages—the celebrity feminists who are always the first to speak up in times of crisis, the prominent women’s organizations who protested loudly when it came to #MeToo, Donald Trump, or Brett Kavanaugh, and the international, supposedly “nonpolitical” human rights organizations—have said and done next to nothing about the murder, kidnap, and rape of Israeli girls. What explains their silence—or worse, their downplaying or denial? When Michelle Obama, Oprah, Malala Yousafzai, Angelina Jolie, Kim Kardashian—and the rest of the civilized world—saw the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls in Nigeria by Boko Haram in April 2014, within days they took to Twitter and demanded “Bring Back Our Girls.” Why isn’t the world demanding the same now? It’s been one hundred days in captivity: bring back our girls.”
Washington Post, January 15, 2023. A former Israeli hostage fears for the women she left behind in Gaza Israeli women and girls have suffered horrific sexual violence from Hamas. Where is the outrage? Deborah Lipstadt and Michèle Taylor The lack of condemnation of these appalling crimes is not only unjust – it is a sign of deeper biases that must be addressed.
The Guardian, January 11, 2024. Israeli women and girls have suffered horrific sexual violence from Hamas. Where is the outrage? – Deborah Lipstadt and Michèle Taylor. Deborah Lipstadt is the US special envoy to combat antisemitism, and Michèle Taylor is the US permanent representative to the UN human rights council.
HAMAS MASSACRE: Documentation of Crimes Against Humanity. On the morning of October 7, 2023, Hamas invaded Israel from Gaza in a massive surprise terrorist attack against civilians by air, land and sea. Photo/Video Gallery – “Hamas’ terrorists recorded their barbaric atrocities on body cameras and cell phones to proudly display their crimes and gloat about them. Many of these cameras were recovered from neutralized terrorists. Now the whole world can see Hamas’ unfathomable savagery. Hamas’ crimes against humanity are a fact. They are backed up by the evidence collected and compiled here. Do not fall for Hamas’ disinformation and media distortion. Extreme viewer discretion is advised. These videos should not be seen by children or by anyone not mentally prepared to witness the graphic reality of Hamas atrocities. All content on this website is available for non-commercial use in news reporting, educational or research purposes, subject to proper attribution and compliance with applicable copyright laws. All the pictures and videos were taken from publicly accessible sources.”
Honest Reporting, January 8, 2024. “A Gaza photojournalist working for international media called on residents of the coastal enclave to cross the border into Israel on October 7, after Hamas terrorists had breached it, an HonestReporting investigation has found. Mohammed Fayq Abu Mostafa, a freelancer who has been working for Reuters, made the comments while excitedly displaying footage of Hamas atrocities on an Instagram Live hosted in Gaza by another photojournalist, Ashraf Amra. Amra has been working for AP, Reuters and APA Images, as well as for Turkish agency Anadolu. The investigation also found Amra had been honored with kisses by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on two previous occasions. The revelation casts doubt on the journalistic impartiality of the two freelance photojournalists and the vetting procedures of media outlets that have relied on their work. The following information was compiled based on a probe of Amra’s and Abu Mostafa’s social media accounts. We also looked at articles and visuals published online and checked image databases of relevant media outlets. “Whoever Can Go – Go” On October 7, Amra hosted an Instagram Live from Khan Younis to provide updates following Hamas’ deadly cross-border assault on Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and some 240 taken hostage. During the broadcast, Amra willingly let a thrilled Abu Mostafa, who had just returned from Israeli territory, display the brutal acts that he had captured on his phone at the breached border area. Amra can be seen laughing and smiling while Abu Mostafa presented footage of the lynching of an Israeli soldier…”
Via Twitter. Hen Mazzig @HenMazzig, January 4, 2023. We know the girls held in Gaza who were raped and might be pregnant, that’s our last chance for them to get abortions, before it’s too late. Mirav Svirsky, the sister of Itay who is held in Gaza with 136 hostages for 3 months.
Reuters reporter is incredibly excited on October 7— describing “Gaza guys” breaching the border with Israel, stealing whatever property they want, kidnapping women and soldiers to Gaza. He said he saw at least 50 women taken. He encourages everyone to go.
Haaretz, January 1, 2024. At the Nova Rave Massacre, Selfies and Reels Were an Act of Defiance. Over 360 people were murdered by Hamas at the Supernova music festival in southern Israel on October 7. The documentary ‘#Nova’ reveals some of the day’s horrors, which were captured by both ravers and terrorists alike. It was not the only thing they would have in common. “We’re in a horror film,” a raver says as she records herself on her smartphone. Little did this terrified young woman know that her footage would soon end up in a horror movie of sorts: the new Israeli documentary “#Nova,” produced by Yes Studios, which presents chronologically, hour by hour and horror after horror, Hamas’ terror attack on the Supernova trance music festival on the morning of October 7 – ground zero for the deadliest terror attack…”
Forward, December 30, 2023. ‘Proving’ rape is hard. Denialism makes it impossible. “In the wake of Oct. 7, as reports of brutal sexual assault by terrorists who infiltrated Southern Israel first began to emerge, it was common to hear demands for proof. Where were the rape kits, the survivor testimonies, the autopsies? If Hamas’ attack involved systemic sexual abuse, then where was the evidence? Nearly three months later, an extensive investigation by The New York Times has provided exactly that. Thanks to video footage, photographs, GPS data from mobile phones and interviews with more than 150 people, including witnesses, medical personnel, soldiers and rape counselors, the Times pieced together a harrowing a picture of the brutal sexual violence that unfolded across the Gaza Envelope that day. While I’m glad the investigative team took the time to document these accounts, I’m also troubled by the continued emphasis on proof and documentation — not just for these particular victims and survivors, but for victims of sexual violence across the globe.”