Frankel, Diaz-Balart lead condemnation of sexual violence by Hamas

U.S. Reps. Lois Frankel and Mario Diaz-Balart on Tuesday condemned the brutal sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists when they attacked Israel — and said the world must do more than ignore the atrocities and turn the other way.

“This brutal violence by Hamas has basically been responded (to) with a shrug — a shrug — worldwide in many quarters,” Frankel said at a news conference in West Palm Beach.

Frankel, a Palm Beach County Democrat, and Diaz-Balart, a Miami-Dade County Republican, are introducing a congressional resolution aimed at drawing attention to, and forcefully condemning, the sexual violence.

The congresswoman said there is overwhelming evidence of rape and other sexual violence against women on Oct. 7, and since.

Frankel said Israeli police have extensive testimony — backed up with photographs and forensic medical units and bodies of victims that includes “countless cases of rape, sexual violence, sexual mutilation.”

She said the sexual violence was so horrible that she declined to delve into details at her news conference.

A two-month New York Times investigation published last month found that “the attacks against women were not isolated events but part of a broader pattern of gender-based violence on Oct. 7.” The Times said it used video footage, photographs, GPS data and interviews with more than 150 people and was able to identify “at least seven locations where Israeli women and girls appear to have been sexually assaulted or mutilated.”

The Times described women and girls found with their “legs spread, clothes torn off, signs of abuse in their genital areas,” a woman’s corpse “discovered in the rubble of a besieged kibbutz with dozens of nails driven into her thighs and groin,” and a woman whose breast was cut off with a box cutter and thrown in the street while another terrorist was raping her.

Overall, the sexual atrocities have received little attention, Frankel said, and insufficient condemnation. “Unless it is a worldwide voice it will not stop. It will not stop. That’s why it’s so important.”

The congressional resolution condemns rape and sexual violence as weapons of war, including acts committed by Hamas terrorists; calls on all nations to criminalize rape and sexual assault; asks international organizations to condemn sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists, and expresses support for independent, impartial investigations.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Frankel’s office said, the resolution has 82 Democratic and 67 Republican cosponsors.

“This resolution is a testament to the unwavering solidarity of Congress in the condemnation of the ruthlessness perpetrated by Hamas. Hamas’ crimes are unfathomable in their depravity and inhumanity. We must roundly condemn this evil, hold the perpetrators accountable, and work to ensure it never happens again,” Diaz-Balart said in a statement.

Lonny Wilk, deputy regional director of the Anti-Defamation League Florida, appearing with Frankel said that the sexual violence should be met with empathy for the victims and condemnation of the perpetrators.

“Here we are more than 100 days since the attack and we still are yet to see many in the international community use their voices,” Wilk said. And in the U.S., he said, “we need everyone to use their voice now more than ever to speak out strongly.”

Laurence Milstein, regional director of the American Jewish Committee Palm Beach County, said “the world must know the truth about these brutal atrocities committed by Hamas on Oct. 7th. We cannot turn a blind eye to the reality of Hamas’ despicable and inexcusable actions, including sexual violence as weapon of war.”

Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, said in a statement he supports the resolution’s condemnation of atrocities and call for independent investigations. “The world must know the truth and must not turn a blind eye to the reality of Hamas’ despicable and inexcusable actions.”

Before he became AJC’s CEO in 2022, Deutch was a Democratic member of Congress from Broward and Palm Beach counties and chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa and International Terrorism.

Anthony Man can be reached at aman@sunsentinel.com and can be found @browardpolitics on Bluesky, Threads, Facebook and Post.news.