On October 7, the videos made by Hamas terrorists themselves were shown across the world. The above stills were taken from one of these videos. It shows Naama Levy, a 19 year old Israeli girl, being violently abducted by several armed men. Her hands are bound behind her back, her feet are bare and she is bleeding from wounds on her face, arms, hands and ankles. Her sweatpants are dirty and bloodied. Especially in the crotch area.

Hundreds of women were brutally killed on October 7. Many of the bodies showed signs of sexual abuse and gender-related mutilation. Eyewitnesses from the Supernova festival described horrific scenes of gang rape and torture. Women’s bodies were found with broken legs and pelvises, breasts cut off, mutilated genitals. I could go on and on, but the scenes are so cruel and shocking that I can’t bring myself to repeat the stories I read. Released hostages have told stories of sexual assault by Hamas members. And abducted women were filmed with obvious signs of abuse. Like Naama Levy.

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The website Bring Naama Levy Home tells us who Naama is:

“Naama Levy was born in Israel, and raised in India where she was educated in an American school. She graduated with a diplomacy major in high school. She was raised on values of tolerance, acceptance, equality, freedom, social justice…

As a young girl, Naama participated in the “Hands of Peace” delegation, which brings together young Americans, Israelis, and Palestinians and nurtures young leaders to promote values of mutual understanding and the pursuit of peace as a lever for creating social-global change.”

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“Naama has always been attentive to others. She has always stood by the different and the less fortunate. She volunteered in a kindergarten for children of foreign workers (asylum seekers) and is a graduate of a youth movement that brings children together from different sectors of Israeli society.”

Always looking to find common ground between people, Naama chose to practice a sport that she loves very much and that, in itself, embodies the convergence of various sports – Triathlon. The strong connection to sports runs in her family – her mother is the doctor of the Israeli women’s soccer team, so Naama has lived and breathed soccer since childhood.

She is also the connecting force at home. The second child out of four, Naama is a role model to her two younger siblings and is adored by her older brother.”

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In the early morning of October 7, Naama was sleeping in her bed at the army base of Nahal Oz. She had arrived at the army base just two days ago. When the rockets start falling and the sirens start ringing, she jumps out of bed and runs barefoot to the shelter. She texts to her mum: “We’re in the safe room. I’ve never experienced anything like this.”

Shortly after that, her phone goes silent. A few hours later, the video surfaces, which shows Naama in the trunk of a black jeep. An armed terrorist drags her out of the trunk and shoves her into the back seat of the car. She looks terrified, disheveled and bloodied.

Since then, Naama has been a hostage. Naama’s parents have been very vocal on her behalf and have demonstrated, given interviews and travelled to the USA to campaign for the release of the hostages. Naama’s mother, Ayelet Levy Shachar, wrote in an article in the Free Press:

“It has been deeply disturbing to see the United Nations and feminist organizations refuse to acknowledge that Hamas raped and committed appalling sexual crimes against women, simply because the victims are Jewish. It took two months for some to finally admit the scale and the brutality of the horror.”

“The same monsters who committed those crimes are holding my daughter hostage.There are seventeen young women still in captivity. They range in age from 18 to 26. I think of what they, and my Naama, could be subjected to at every moment of the day. Each minute is an eternity in hell.”

“What would you do if your daughter were being held hostage by violent rapists and murderers for two months? Perhaps the better question is: What wouldn’t you do?“

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Naama’s father, Yoni Levy, said in the New York Post:

“We talked about Michelle Obama often. She [Naama] believed her to be someone who not only cared about global women but also someone with a really good heart.”

“What I want to know: Why has she, and all these other famous women Naama looked up to, and all of the global human rights organizations she believed in, stayed silent about what has happened to my Naama and all the other girls who are still held hostage?”

“It is like they have disappeared. Their silence shouts loudly. Naama believed in the power of women helping each other. She believed in the power of women. I am disappointed for her.”

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I am disappointed, too. I am furious and heartbroken by the deafening silence of so many people who claim to care about human rights, about women’s rights, about violated girls in war zones.

Protests have been staged all over the world against the silence of the UN, the MeToo movement and all other women’s rights organizations. Protests that show how violated and pushed aside we feel, and the reality of what happened to the girls and women of Israel.

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What woman has not felt the threat of a man’s superior strength? What woman doesn’t know what it’s like to be touched against her will, to be followed and harrassed, maybe even to be assaulted? I think pretty much all of us have experienced gender-related threats at some point in our lives. So how can you all look the other way, shrug this off, just because the abused women in question are Israelis and you don’t like Israel?

Open your eyes. See what really happened. And stand up against it. Hamas is a dangerous death cult, that treats women as property, that throws homosexuals off rooftops and kills anyone who dares to oppose them. How can anyone stand with that kind of evil? It is beyond me.

Sheryl Sandberg, a well-known American author and public figure, is working on a documentary about gender-related violence by Hamas, called Screams Before Silence. In this documentary, she speaks to eyewitnesses, released hostages and first responders to gather evidence for sexual crimes committed by Hamas terrorists. The documentary is coming out in April 2024.

I will have to gather all of my willpower to make myself watch it. I know it will be horrific, terrifying and nightmare-inducing. But I will watch it. For Naama, for Noa, for Shani, and for all the other women and girls who were raped, abducted or brutally murdered and paraded through the streets of Gaza.

We are with you, Naama. We love you, we are waiting for you, and we will do anything to bring you back home and to keep you safe forever. 🧡

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