Report provides legal framework to prosecute sexual violence during Oct. 7 Hamas massacre

By Ariela Karmel

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8 July 2025, 12:08 pm

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Ariela Karmel is a political correspondent at The Times of Israel. She previously reported for Calcalist and Haaretz. She holds an MA in Middle Eastern and African History from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.

A new report providing the first legal framework for prosecuting Hamas terrorists for the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war during the October 7, 2023, massacre is being presented by the Dinah Project to First Lady Michal Herzog at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem.

The report confirms that Hamas systematically used rape and sexual violence as tools of war during the October 7 massacres and is the first to present a legal roadmap for identifying and pursuing justice for the use of sexual violence as a weapon of warfare, which constitutes a crime against humanity.

The gathering of primarily women notably includes former hostage Ilana Gritzewsky, who has publicly spoken about being sexually assaulted by her captors in Gaza.

“This report tells the truth as it is — shocking, painful, but necessary. On behalf of all those who were harmed, we are committed to continuing the fight until their cries are heard everywhere and justice is done,” says First Lady Michal Herzog.

“We carry here a universal message: that sexual violence cannot be accepted as a tool of war,” she says, drawing attention to the plight of the remaining 50 hostages, including Inbar Hayman, the single female captive who is believed to be dead.

The research was conducted by the Dinah Project, an initiative formed following October 7, which works to achieve recognition and justice for survivors of sexual violence in conflict zones, and spent a year and a half consolidating all available evidence and reports on sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 and subsequently against hostages.

“Sexual violence in conflict is a weapon. It is not random, not targeted only at individuals, and not without intent from above. It is time for the international community to treat it as such,” says Prof. Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, a legal expert at Bar-Ilan University, who co-authored the report alongside retired Judge Nava Ben-Or, and Col. (res.) Adv. Sharon Zagagi-Pinhas, former Chief Military Prosecutor of the IDF.