UPDATING LIVE: Civilians in Israel and Palestine 'cannot be abandoned', says top UN official on sexual violence in conflict

Amid worsening humanitarian conditions in the war in Gaza, the UN Secretary- General's Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, briefed the Security Council in New York on her sexual violence report relating to the 7 October attacks. She said while nothing can justify the "deliberate violence" perpetrated by Hamas, nothing could justify "the collective punishment of the people in Gaza". **3:29 PM** ### Civilians terrorized: UK **Tariq Ahmad, the UK Minister of State for the Middle East** , said that it is a tragic fact that sexual violence is used to terrorize civilians, shattering lives and leaving brutal and lifelong scars on victims, their families, and communities. He voiced "deep concern" over Special Representative Patten's findings, including "reasonable grounds" to believe that sexual violence occurred in Israel on 7 October and the existence of "clear and convincing" information that sexual violence has been committed against hostages. "It is deeply disturbing to know that 'such violence may be ongoing against those still in captivity'," he added, calling for the immediate, safe and unconditional release of all hostages.  UN Photo United Kingdom's Minister for the Middle East, Lord Tariq Ahmad, addresses the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. Lord Ahmad also expressed "deep shock" at the reports of sexual violence perpetrated by Israeli forces against Palestinian detainees, which are being investigated. "I call on Israel to take immediate measures to prevent conflict-related sexual violence, to abide by international humanitarian law, to ensure thorough investigations into these reports, and for perpetrators to be held to account," he added. "Let me be absolutely clear – we, the United Kingdom, condemn conflict-related sexual violence unequivocally, wherever it occurs, and stand in solidarity with all victims and survivors," he said. "Put it simply, it must stop. Perpetrators must be held accountable. Survivors must receive holistic support," he said. In conclusion, Lord Ahmad said that justice delayed is justice denied, and that a two-State solution is the "only way" to achieve justice and security for both Israelis and Palestinians. "The first step must be an immediate stop to the fighting leading to a permanent, sustainable ceasefire, the release of all hostages and vital humanitarian lifesaving aid delivered to Gaza. It is this solution that we seek," he said, adding: "We owe it to the legacy of every innocent civilian killed in Israel and across the Occupied Palestinian Territories to utilize every lever and channel we have in pursuit of this." **3:10 PM** ### **'I saw the pain in their eyes': Patten** **UN Secretary-General's Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten** , provided an overview of her mission to Israel and the West Bank, which was not investigative in nature, but aimed at gathering, analysing and verifying reports on conflict-related sexual violence. Considering the ongoing hostilities, she did not request a visit to Gaza, where other UN entities are operation, with some monitoring sexual violence. "T **here has been no attempt by the Secretary-General to silence my report or suppress its findings,** " she said at the outset, emphasizing that her team, including nine UN experts, conducted the mission in accordance of independence and transparency. Conclusions were based on the credibility and reliability of sources and assessing whether or not there was information sufficient to determine a finding of fact, she said, noting that in a number of cases, the team assessed that certain allegations were unfounded.  UN Photo Pramila Patten, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, briefs UN Security Council members on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. ### **Israel visit** Her team conducted interviews with 34 individuals, including survivors of the 7 October attacks, visiting four sites of alleged attacks and review over 5,000 images and 50 hours of footage provided by authorities and independent sources. The team did not meet with survivors of sexual attacks, she said. " **What I witnessed in Israel, were scenes of unspeakable violence perpetrated with shocking brutality resulting in intense human suffering** ," she said, recalling meeting with traumatized communities who are trying to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives. "I saw the pain in their eyes," she said, citing reports of people who had been shot, burned in their homes and killed by grenades alongside the abduction of hostages, mutilation of corpses and widespread looting. "It was a catalogue of the most extreme and inhumane forms of killing, torture and other horrors." ### Hostages in Gaza "We found clear and convincing information that sexual violence, including rape, sexualized torture, and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment has been committed against hostages and **we have reasonable grounds to believe that such violence may still be ongoing against those in captivity** ," she said, adding that this information does not legitimize further hostilities. Instead, this creates "a moral imperative" for a humanitarian ceasefire to end the unspeakable suffering imposed on Palestinian civilians in Gaza and bring home the hostages, she said. **3:06 PM** **Ms. Patten** is briefing ambassadors, and said the Council was meeting more than 150 days after the coordinated Hamas-led attack, the deadliest in Israeli history. She also reminded that more than 30,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have perished in the aftermath of 7 October during the Israeli offensive, according to figures released by the health ministry in Gaza. **2:45 PM** Ms. Patten is expected to provide an overview of the report on sexual violence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, which made headlines worldwide upon its release last week following a visit to the region from late January to mid-February. According to the report, the Special Representative said that during the Hamas attacks on Israel in October, there are **"reasonable grounds" to believe that incidents of sexual violence took place "in at least three locations",** including the Nova music festival. Findings also showed hostages taken during the attacks faced "rape and sexualized torture and sexualized cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and it also has reasonable grounds to believe that **such violence may be ongoing** " inside Gaza. In the West Bank, her team heard "the views and concerns" of Palestinian counterparts over incidents "allegedly committed by Israeli security forces and settlers". The report noted that stakeholders had "r **aised concerns about cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of Palestinians in detention** , including the increased use of various forms of sexual violence, namely invasive body searches, threats of rape and prolonged forced nudity". The meeting is taking place against the backdrop of rising hunger in Gaza, where aid deliveries have been blocked by Israel and the risk of famine is steadily mounting, as Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) military operations are planning a ground invasion in Rafah, the southern point of the besieged and bombarded enclave, where more than 1.5 million Gazans are seeking shelter from the fighting.

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