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Israeli hostage recounts sexual assault in Gaza captivity

  • In an interview with The New York Times, Amit Soussana, 40, said she was forced at gunpoint to perform a sex act on the man guarding her
  • UN has reported ‘reasonable grounds to believe’ sexual violence took place during Hamas’ attack on Israel. Hamas has repeatedly rejected accusations

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Released hostage Amit Soussana, kidnapped during the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, in front of her destroyed home at the Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Israel, on January 29. Photo: Reuters
A released Israeli hostage recounted sexual assault at gunpoint by one of the Palestinian militants who held her captive in Gaza, in a first such personal account published on Tuesday in an interview with The New York Times newspaper.
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Amit Soussana, 40, was taken hostage on October 7 from Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Security camera footage showed her fighting back against her abductors. She said that around October 24 she was attacked by the man guarding her after washing in the bathroom.

Soussana said the guard, who called himself Muhammad, put a gun to her forehead, beat her and dragged her to a child’s bedroom. “Then he, with the gun pointed at me, forced me to commit a sexual act on him,” Soussana said in the interview.

The Times said Soussana’s account was consistent with what she told two doctors and a social worker less than 24 hours after she was freed on November 30. during a week-long truce.

“Their reports about her account state the nature of the sexual act; The Times agreed not to disclose the specifics,” the newspaper said.

At least three released hostages have spoken publicly, including one in an interview with Reuters, about incidents of sexual abuse against fellow captives.
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On March 5 a team of United Nations experts reported that there were “reasonable grounds to believe” sexual violence, including rape and gang rape, occurred at several locations during the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas militants.
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