Israeli activist group publishes full-page ad, calls on world to recognise women's abuse by Hamas

Dec 05, 2023

Tel Aviv [Israel], December 5 : Amid the resumption of the ongoing war with terror group Hamas, following a temporary hold on hostilities to facilitate the release of hostages in Gaza, an Israeli activist group published a full-page advertisement in the New York Times, calling on the UN and the world to recognise the sexual abuse of Israeli women by Hamas on October 7, The Times of Israel reported.
The full-page ad read, "An open letter to all women," citing the UN Security Council resolution which condemns gender-based violence, adding, "Nowhere does it state... except when Hamas rapes Israeli women."
"No woman should close her eyes, in fact, no one should close their eyes to the barbarity of rape. So why are some looking away? Speak now. Silence is consent," the advertisement went, according to the Times of Israel.
The daily quoted the founder of the organisation, Moran Zer Katzenstein, as saying, "For two months since that Saturday, the evidence of the crimes which were carried out against women is growing and building and the scale of the horror is becoming clearer."
Zer Katzenstein will be among those presenting evidence at the special UN session on sexual violence on October 7 led by the Israeli Mission to the UN today.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it will not wait until the end of the war in Gaza to investigate potential failings in preventing Hamas' October 7 attacks, CNN reported citing a spokesperson for Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Monday.
"We will not postpone everything until the end of the war," Adm. Daniel Hagari told journalists on Monday, adding, "That's our decision. We are thinking about what's the right point for us to start doing this because we must give these answers to the public".