Hamas attackers raped women’s corpses, UN report finds
5 March 2024, 08:18 | Updated: 5 March 2024, 08:20
Hamas attackers raped women’s corpses, a UN report has found - also citing "clear and convincing" evidence about sexual violence being used against hostages held in Gaza.
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It says a "fully-fledged investigation" is now needed to establish the scale of the violence - including multiple cases of rape during the October 7th attack.
Hamas has previously strongly rejected the allegations.
Pramilla Patten, the UN special envoy on sexual violence and women, said there were “reasonable grounds” to believe Hamas committed “sexualised torture” when they carried out their attack on Israel on Oct 7.
Sexual violence against Israeli hostages in Gaza may also be ongoing, the report found.
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The report also highlighted allegations of sexual violence against Palestinian women, men and girls that implicated Israeli security forces and settlers in the West Bank.
Israelis have been accused of “beatings, including in the genital areas”, body searches including “unwanted touching of intimate areas” and threats of rape “during house raids – including at night – and at checkpoints”.
During the October 7 attack, experts say they found evidence of rape and gang rape at the Nova music festival site, the road to leave it and kibbutz Re’im, near the Gaza border.
“In most of these incidents, victims first subjected to rape were then killed, and at least two incidents relate to the rape of women’s corpses,” the report said.
“Overall, the mission team is of the view that the true prevalence of sexual violence during the 7 October attacks and their aftermath may take months or years to emerge and may never be fully known,” said the report.
The report also found that a highly publicised allegation that a pregnant woman’s womb was reportedly ripped open before being killed with her fetus stabbed inside her was 'unfounded'.
