A Dinah Project’s new report collects representative testimony from sexual violence experienced by hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. This report from T4Change is in the aftermath of the horror inflicted by the terror attacks on October 7, 2023. Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, a legal scholar, and Sharon Zagagi-Pinhas, then chief military prosecutor of the Israel Defense Forces, led the charge. They have interviewed and produced footage using the immersive testimonies of 15 former hostages that made it home. These conclusions stress the deployment of sexual violence as a gritty military strategy throughout the war.
Dinah Project all-women experts conducted long interviews. Joining forces with these determined creatives, they interviewed both survivors and bystanders on the ground to reconstruct what happened that fateful day. Among those interviewed was one survivor who had described a failed rape as she fled the attacks. In addition, they interviewed 17 eyewitnesses and 27 first responders who were on the scenes of the violence.
These witnesses exposed the many perplexing and shocking details. Thirteen of the women and two men who survived captivity were victims or witnesses to sexual violence during their hostage ordeal. One of the five female hostages detailed inhuman treatment, including being beaten and sexually harassed at gunpoint throughout her captivity. Victims of these potential hostages reported threats of rape under the guise of forced marriages, adding an additional layer of terror and degradation.
Perhaps the most harrowing testimony was that of one of the female hostages, who was bound by an iron ankle chain for three weeks. She put up with questions about her period while here. This detail serves to underscore just how far her captors went with their psychological manipulation.
The Dinah Project’s investigation aligns with findings from the United Nations’ Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten. Independent of any alleged commission, she found there to be a reasonable basis to believe that conflict related sexual violence has occurred in various locations across Gaza. Patten found clear and convincing evidence of sexual assault perpetrated against hostages. This second finding should be a clarion call for international recognition and prompt action right now.
The Dinah Project, funded by the Ruth and Emanuel Rackman Center for the Advancement of Women at Bar-Ilan University, seeks to publicize these horrors. It creatively provokes change. It doggedly pursues justice. These collected testimonies serve as a historical record of the suffering endured by these individuals. They elevate their calls for accountability and immediate action to stop these violations.
Survivor and witness accounts like these begin to paint a picture of violence that takes on a much larger scope beyond physical enslavement. The psychological scars left by these experiences will affect individuals and communities for generations to come. The Dinah Project turns its lens to telling these stories. They want to raise consciousness about the plight of those impacted and focus political will toward making the systemic changes necessary to avoid future calamities.
