What we understand regarding reports of sexual assault amidst the Hamas offensive.
Biden, Netanyahu, public figures, and opinion writers have promptly criticized sexual assault allegations. However, the IDF has not yet obtained any substantiated evidence to confirm its occurrence.
During a historically passionate speech expressing unwavering U.S. support for Israel on Tuesday, President Joe Biden highlighted among the atrocities committed by Hamas the claim that women had been “raped, assaulted, paraded as trophies.”
According to a White House spokesperson, this assertion was relayed to Biden by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call earlier that day, where Netanyahu described Israeli women as having been “brutally raped and murdered.” Similar characterizations have been echoed in condemnations of Hamas by columnists, celebrities, and editorial boards.
However, the source of the rape allegation remains unclear. While sexual assault is sadly prevalent in conflicts worldwide, the Israel Defense Forces informed the Forward on Tuesday night that they currently lack evidence to confirm any instances of rape during the attack on Saturday or its aftermath. Additionally, many mainstream media outlets have refrained from mentioning rape, with the Los Angeles Times and NBC News specifically noting their inability to verify such claims.
The widespread inclusion of references to rape in condemnations of the unprecedented Hamas attack underscores the difficulties of comprehending a war as it unfolds in real time through social media, an environment susceptible to disinformation and manipulation by propagandists.
David Broniatowski, a social media expert from George Washington University, emphasized the significance of distinguishing between false claims and those that remain unverified. He cautioned, “If your assessment leads you to uncertainty or unverified information, consider the potential societal implications of sharing such content.”
Disinformation experts have voiced criticism against X, formerly known as Twitter, for their alleged failure to moderate content related to the conflict, including the circulation of graphic videos depicting the Hamas attack over the weekend.
A White House official revealed on Wednesday morning that President Biden’s comments were informed by his conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu and an article in The Times of Israel, which made reference to videos circulating on social media, causing concerns about potential sexual assault against women. The official, speaking anonymously, clarified that the president referred to the rape allegations as “disturbing reports” rather than established facts.
However, some individuals have not exercised the same level of caution. Senator Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, stated on CNN, “These are individuals who deliberately targeted teenage girls, women, children, and the elderly, not just for rape and murder but also for discarding their bodies on the streets of Gaza. Truly horrifying acts.”
In an editorial, The Denver Post on Tuesday criticized a local politician for failing to condemn “the murder, rape, and torture of innocent civilians.”
Abe Foxman, the former long-serving leader of the Anti-Defamation League, expressed his dissatisfaction in a letter to Troy McKenzie, the dean of New York University’s law school. Foxman raised concerns that McKenzie had omitted “rape” from his list of condemnations in his statement about the Hamas attack.
In the meantime, the Los Angeles Times opted to eliminate references to rape from a column published on Monday and appended a note indicating that “such reports have not been substantiated.” NBC News, when sharing a video of Netanyahu mentioning sexual assault, included a disclaimer stating that the assertion had not been verified.
Jonah Goldberg, the author of the Times column, did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. The newspaper’s spokesperson, Hillary Manning, commented, “We prefer not to provide additional comments beyond what is stated in the correction.”
Regarding the rape allegations mentioned after Netanyahu’s remarks, an IDF spokesperson stated, “We cannot officially confirm any of those details at this time.”
What’s the backstory?
The reports of sexual assault seem to have multiple origins amidst the fragmented media coverage of the chaotic events in southern Israel, following the unexpected breach of the border fence by Hamas militants, resulting in the tragic death of over 1,200 Israelis.
Liel Leibovitz, a conservative columnist for the online Jewish magazine Tablet, published an article on Sunday, which was based on interviews with anonymous survivors of the Hamas attack during a desert music festival near the Gaza border. Emergency responders estimated that over 200 young people lost their lives there, and an unknown number were abducted.
According to one festival attendee quoted by Leibovitz, “Women have been sexually assaulted in the vicinity of the rave, near the bodies of their friends.” However, the individual did not claim to have witnessed these incidents firsthand and mentioned seeing related videos on social media.
Leibovitz also wrote, without specifying a source, that “several of these sexual assault victims appear to have been subsequently executed, while others were transported to Gaza.” Although there were videos circulating online during the weekend that were being used as evidence of sexual assault, none of them precisely matched Leibovitz’s description.
