Some Harsh Reality Unveiled

On Tuesday 12th May, Israel’s Civil Commission issued a major report titled `Silenced No More’, the result of two years of independent investigation into the 7th October 2023 attack upon Israel. It reviews evidence that includes survivor and witness testimonies, interviews, more than 10,000 photographs, videos, official records, and other materials.

The extensive and thorough nature of the investigation can be discerned from the fact that just the photos and videos required well over 1,800 hours of analysis. The Commission conducted more than 430 formal and informal interviews and meetings with survivors, witnesses, returned hostages, experts and family members; cross-referencing survivor and witness accounts, and visiting physical locations.

It concluded that sexual and gender-based violence was systematic, widespread, and integral to the 7th October attack and its aftermath. Hamas and its collaborators deployed recurring tactics of sexual abuse and torture against victims - crimes marked by extreme cruelty and profound suffering, often inflicted in ways designed to amplify terror and humiliation.

The Civil Commission’s report is vitally important because many victims did not survive and others live with severe physical and psychological trauma. It serves both a legal and historical function: supporting prosecutions, preserving evidence, and establishing a definitive record.

Yet its publication last week was not given the attention it deserved. It seems that many people around the world do not want to know what really happened during that massive terrorist attack upon Israel on 7th October 2023.