JERUSALEM (Reuters) -An Israeli hostage who was launched in October has advised an Israeli tv channel he was subjected to sexual violence throughout his two-year captivity in Gaza by Palestinian militants — the primary male hostage to publicly make such an accusation.
Rom Braslavski, 21, who was kidnapped from the Nova music competition on October 7, 2023, made the allegation in an interview with Channel 13’s Hazinor programme. Excerpts of the interview, broadcast late on Thursday, have been shared with Reuters.
Describing being stripped bare and tied up whereas in captivity, he additionally recounted actions by one in every of his captors, saying: “It was sexual violence, and its important objective was humiliation. Its objective was to humiliate me, to crush my dignity.”
He stated it was laborious for him to speak concerning the expertise.
“I used to be praying to God, like, please save me, get me out of this already,” he stated within the interview as he held again tears.
Reuters was unable to talk to Braslavski instantly and couldn’t independently verify the specifics of his account.
Braslavski was held by Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian militant group allied with Hamas which additionally took hostages within the 2023 assault. Whereas he was in captivity, Islamic Jihad launched a video of a skeletal and weeping Braslavski during which he seemed to be in ache.
Requested by Reuters for remark, an Islamic Jihad official stated Braslavski’s allegation about sexual abuse was “incorrect” with out elaborating.
An Israeli authorities spokesperson advised journalists in a each day on-line briefing that Braslavski’s account was “dwelling testimony” of what she described because the true nature of Gaza’s militant teams.
A minimum of 4 girls held as hostages have spoken publicly about incidents of sexual abuse towards themselves or fellow captives.
In March 2024, a crew of United Nations specialists reported that it additionally discovered what it described as clear and convincing info that among the hostages taken to Gaza have been subjected to sexual violence.
Hamas, which held many of the hostages, has denied the allegations.
Braslavski additionally described common beatings. “You simply pray to God for it to cease. And when you’re there, every single day, with each beating, every single day, you say to your self — I accomplished one other day in hell,” he stated.
Palestinian militants killed 1,200 individuals of their cross-border assaults in October 2023 and took 251 hostages again to Gaza. Israel responded with a two-year army assault on the enclave that killed greater than 68,000 individuals.
Braslavski is among the final 20 dwelling hostages launched on October 13 as a part of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. Round 2,000 Palestinian convicts and Gaza detainees have been freed in trade.
Rights teams, together with Israeli ones, have documented abuse of Palestinians in Israeli prisons in the course of the battle, together with sexual violence.
Israel is investigating dozens of suspected abuse instances however denies systematic abuse.
(Writing by Michael Georgy; Enhancing by Howard Goller)