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A monument at the site of the Nova rave, the single deadliest site of the October 7 terrorist attacks. The UN team's new report found “reasonable grounds to believe” the rape occurred on October 7, including at that location. Of raves.
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A monument at the site of the Nova rave, the single deadliest site of the October 7 terrorist attacks. The UN team's new report found “reasonable grounds to believe” the rape occurred on October 7, including at that location. Of raves.
Menaham Kahana/AFP via Getty Images
The UN report found “reasonable grounds to believe” that the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7 included sexual violence, including rape and gang rape, and that some Israeli hostages experienced such violence while detained in the Gaza Strip.
The long-awaited report is not a full-fledged UN investigation, the author and UN Special Representative for Sexual Violence and Violence in Conflict has said. Israel has blocked a UN human rights office investigation into what the country's leaders say is anti-Israel bias.
Nonetheless, the report represents the most comprehensive report on the topic of sexual violence conducted on October 7 by an independent agency based outside Israel.
The findings are based on dozens of interviews with attack survivors, witnesses, first responders and health care providers during a 17-day trip to Israel in January and February. UN researchers and experts also reviewed more than 5,000 photos and about 50 hours of video of the attack.
![Israel urges UN to investigate allegations of sexual violence by Hamas fighters](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2023/12/06/gettyimages-1818870240_sq-df552b6bf587f711aad03bf256a8145006cf1fcf-s100.jpg)
The report said the rapes likely occurred in at least three locations on October 7. And researchers found “clear and compelling information” about rape and sexual abuse of hostages in Gaza, warning that such violence could continue. In a terrorist attack on October 7, a total of 1,200 people were killed and 240 were taken hostage.
“The mission was a difficult task, given what we heard and the details we received of the most shocking and brutal attacks by Hamas and other armed groups. We saw a catalog of the most extreme and inhumane forms of torture and other forms of torture,” Pramila said. UN Special Representative Patton said this at a press conference held at the United Nations in New York on Monday.
But she said the findings do not in any way justify further violence but rather reinforce the need for a ceasefire.
Perhaps no topic related to the October 7 attacks has been more intensively investigated than the issue of sexual violence that day. Skeptical media and social media users thoroughly compared eyewitness accounts and questioned the credibility of some first responders whose statements turned out to be false.
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that rules Gaza, has denied the claims and accused Israel of using them to justify an ongoing military operation in Gaza that has killed at least 30,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
Survivors of the October 7 sexual assault did not come forward publicly. The UN team said they “were made aware of a small number of survivors” who were still receiving trauma treatment, but were ultimately unable to meet anyone.
“Obviously this is a very sensitive issue and they have to come forward in their own time and on their own terms, so we didn’t push it,” Patton said. The team received first-hand testimony from freed hostages.
The report noted many challenges facing investigators, starting with the scale of the attack. “The massive death toll from the attacks in multiple locations on October 7 greatly exceeded the response capabilities of Israeli authorities, forcing them to prioritize efforts to regain control of the affected areas over the collection of evidence for investigative purposes.” The report states, according to a copy provided to reporters:
![The death toll in Gaza has now surpassed 30,000. Reasons for incomplete aggregation include:](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/29/ap23326486289991_sq-e32861bb21a25201bfcf6fdda0acfbc86e666ed4-s100.jpg)
The report said Israeli government agencies could have worked together better. Volunteer first responders were poorly trained, which led to mistakes, mishandling of evidence and misinterpretation of remains. Israeli authorities prioritized other goals, such as identifying victims and burying the dead according to Jewish religious customs, over collecting forensic evidence. And at least 100 bodies were so badly burned that little evidence could be collected, researchers said.
The investigation team ultimately determined that some cases of sexual violence, including several reported in media reports, were unverifiable or completely unfounded.
Nonetheless, the report found reason to believe that rapes occurred in at least three locations, including the Nova Rave festival site, Route 232, a major highway along the Gaza border, and one of the kibbutzim that was attacked.
“In most cases, the victims were first raped and then murdered. There were at least two incidents involving the rape of female corpses,” Patton said.
![Harris calls for ceasefire in Gaza due to hostage trade, calls for easing aid delivery to Israel](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/03/03/gettyimages-2049062860_sq-2e2e8b01c132e19a4f9a441107e087ae43c30858-s100.jpg)
The report said several bodies, mostly women, were found naked or undressed below the waist, with their hands tied and shot to death. “Although circumstantial, that pattern could indicate some form of sexual violence,” Patton said.
Patten also traveled to the West Bank, where she and her staff interviewed Palestinian officials and four recently released detainees about sexual violence against Palestinians detained by Israeli security forces. Other UN agencies are already looking into these claims further. Patten's team did not visit Gaza.