Former hostage Ilana Grichevsky, who was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, confronted the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday, accusing her of omitting Hamas sexual violence from her reports. Grichevsky delivered a personal testimony of being sexually assaulted and abused by Hamas captors, saying she stands as "living proof" of the crimes the UN has refused to acknowledge.
Former hostage Ilana Grichevsky, who was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz during the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led invasion, confronted the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and Girls at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday. Grichevsky accused the rapporteur, Reem Alsalem, of omitting Hamas's systematic sexual violence from her reports despite abundant survivor testimony and evidence.
Delivering an emotional personal testimony, Grichevsky described being beaten, sexually assaulted, and repeatedly raped by seven Hamas operatives during her abduction. She recounted waking up half-naked to find her captors looming over her. She suffered a broken jaw and broken hip in captivity. "I stand here today — not as a report, not as a statistic. I am living proof of Hamas sexual violence," Grichevsky said.
Her confrontation comes amid ongoing criticism by Israeli officials, activists, and The Zioneer's prior reporting of the UN's failure to adequately document or publicly condemn sexual violence by Hamas against Israeli civilians and hostages. The Zioneer previously reported on a UN report that acknowledged it could not verify reports of sexual violence against Israeli hostages, drawing sharp condemnation from Israeli officials and survivors' advocates.
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