During the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas terrorists engaged in sexual violence, according to a report.

The ARCCI released a report detailing the sexual crimes committed during the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which were committed "systematically and intentionally."

In her opening remarks of the "Silent Cry" report, Orit Sulitzeanu, executive director of the ARRCI, stated that while the information and testimonies provided clarify what occurred, there are still significant parts of the story that remain unknown. The ARCCI is an umbrella organization of Israel's regional rape crisis centers.

"The picture presented in the report is still preliminary due to the delayed disclosure of sexual assaults, especially during wartime. However, in the future, the survivors' choices may allow us to bring a fuller story of the sexual assaults on Oct. 7 and thereafter to light."

The Hamas attack involved violent rapes, often with threats of weapons, and many of these rapes were collective, with collaboration among the perpetrators and sometimes in front of witnesses, including family members.

The report described how the rapists sometimes engaged in "sadistic practices," such as binding and tying up victims, mutilating genital organs, including severed breasts, and using weapons during the rape.

According to a report, four rescue workers from the Nova festival described discovering women's bodies with spread legs, without underwear, and with hands bound behind their backs, in an interview with the New York Times.

The rapists aimed to increase the victims' humiliation through "sadistic practices," and in many cases, they subsequently killed the victims.

Investigators discovered violated female soldiers' bodies at the Shura military base, at kibbutzes where Hamas attacked civilians, at the Nova music festival, and in some cases during "captivity."

The report concluded that the sexual assaults committed in the Oct. 7 attack and thereafter were carried out systematically and deliberately, based on the testimonies and information provided.

Obtaining evidence and testimony is challenging, and the process becomes even more difficult during wartime.

"The report gathered data from official sources, local and international press, interviews with "first responders" in various regions, and information received from professionals and confidential calls. It did not include information from social media or "unverified sources.""

Last year, Maudi Weiss, the first Israeli representative to serve as a senior adviser to the president of the 77th Session of the U.N. General Assembly, stated that U.N. bodies, particularly U.N. Women, failed to recognize that atrocities were committed against Israeli women and young girls, despite much of it being filmed by Hamas and other Palestinian terrorists from Gaza. As a result, the search for evidence received little assistance from external bodies and entities.

The report concluded that sexual assaults against children and men may have occurred, but emphasized that there is limited information about this phenomenon, specifically focusing on body mutilation.

"The limited exposure of sexual assaults on men, even in comparison to the limited exposure of sexual assaults in war, is considered characteristic of the phenomenon. Men often experience compound shame when disclosing sexual assaults, which are perceived as deeply humiliating and an attack on masculinity."

The report stated that male survivors in this case may face more challenges in seeking assistance.