On International Women's Day, Israelis Urge World to Remember Abused Hostages

Friday is International Women’s Day and Israel is pushing for the U.N. to recognize the atrocities Hamas committed against Israeli women on October 7^th, and those still being committed against more than a dozen Israeli women still held in Hamas captivity in Gaza.

Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Israel Katz posted on X, “The US, UK, and France back my call for a UN Security Council session on Hamas's sexual violence. On International Women's Day, the UN and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres must act, not be silent. Time to declare Hamas a terror group and call for the release of all hostages."

Today is #InternationalWomensDay

These are the faces of Israeli women who have endured torture, starvation, physical and psychological abuse, and sexual violence.

You cannot claim to stand for women's rights if you aren't joining the fight to bring these women home.… pic.twitter.com/7oQyXE8nWH

— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) March 8, 2024

Earlier this week, Pramila Patten, United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, who recently visited Israel, called on Hamas to “immediately and unconditionally release all individuals held in captivity and to ensure their protection, including from sexual violence.”

She found that there was substantial evidence that Hamas terrorists did sexually abuse and rape victims, becoming the first international recognition backing Israel’s claims of what took place on October 7.

From the first days after Hamas’ October 7 massacre, experts in the field of sexual crimes and abuse knew that Hamas had gone way beyond murdering people to systematic disfigurement, mutilation, and burning of bodies and sexual crimes that couldn’t even be described. But much of the world chose to ignore it and refused to condemn Hamas’ behavior.

Ahead of International Women’s Day on Friday, The Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel released a report about the sexual atrocities that Hamas committed on October 7^th and beyond.

CBN News spoke with Orit Sulitzeanu, executive director of ARCCI, to find out more about the report, what happened on October 7^th, and how the international community can help.

Click on the video above to watch the interview.