Efe Jerusalem

Jerusalem

Updated Tuesday, March 5, 2024-13:16

  • Terrorism Hamas launches its largest attack by land, air and sea from Gaza and Israel declares a state of war

The UN special representative on sexual violence in conflict,

Pramila Patten

, presented a report on Monday at the United Nations headquarters in New York in which she ensures that there is "clear and convincing information" of

sexual assaults

during the brutal attacks of the October 7 and that some hostages were raped.

Patten assures that "this violence may be ongoing against those who are still being held."

Accompanied by a delegation of experts, Patten visited Israel and the West Bank for two and a half weeks in early February to gather information, and published the report a month later.

Despite everything, the Israeli Foreign Minister,

Israel Katz

, criticized on Monday night the organization's late reaction to this issue, five months after the Hamas attack.

"Hamas and its allies are trying to discredit the report to escape this

horrible shame

. They will not succeed, since the testimonies are truly shocking," said Israeli President

Isaac Herzog

.

The president also called for continued "tireless efforts" to return all hostages home, as they are "constantly under clear and present danger," as the UN report has shown.

Hamas denied this Tuesday that its fighters carried out

crimes of sexual violence and abuse against women

during the attacks on October 7.

Despite the fact that the report endorses the Israeli version of sexual violence by Hamas, the Foreign Minister called his ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan

, for consultations on Monday night

to address the "attempt to silence Hamas's serious report." the UN on the massive violations committed by Hamas.

"The UN Secretary General (

António Guterres

) did not convene the Security Council in light of the report's conclusions to declare Hamas a terrorist organization and impose sanctions on its supporters," Katz added.

On October 7, Hamas carried out an attack against Israel that sparked the war and included the launching of thousands of rockets, as well as the simultaneous infiltration of some 3,000 militiamen who massacred some

1,200 people

in towns near the Gaza Strip and They kidnapped another 250, of whom a hundred are still alive in the Palestinian enclave.

In almost five months of war in the Strip, some

30,500 Gazans

have died , 80% of them civilians, according to the enclave's Ministry of Health, controlled by Hamas.