“He continued to beat me. Then he dragged me to the bedroom.
Amit Susana in front of her destroyed home in Kibbutz Kafar Asa at the end of January
What: REUTERS
Israeli Amit Susanna was held by Hamas terrorists for 54 days. Now she's publicly reporting her brutal kidnapping, torture in the tunnels — and sexual abuse by her bodyguard.
AOn October 7, Israeli lawyer Amit Susanna was abducted by armed men from Kibbutz Kafar Asa near the Gaza border. He was held hostage by Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip for 54 days. Susana spoke publicly about her time in Gaza after she was released as part of a Palestinian prisoner exchange at the end of November.
Now, for the first time, he described “The New York Times“Reports what was done to her. During her captivity, she was subjected to repeated physical attacks, torture, humiliation and frightening situations. She also complained of sexual abuse.
Susana told the New York Times that she was assaulted when she was abducted on October 7. Footage from a surveillance camera backs up his statements. The 40-year-old explained that he was taken to the Gaza Strip with his hands and feet tied.
“I found my whole face swollen and blue”
She was held captive in a private house in Gaza. Initially, three people were in custody. Her ankles were chained to the window frame.
On October 11 she was taken to another room in chains. There was a mirror. For the first time since her abduction she could see herself like this. “I looked at the chains and saw that my whole face was swollen and blue,” said Souzana. “I started crying.”
After that, she was protected by only one of the three men called Muhammad. Sometimes the guard came into her room, sat beside her on the bed, pushed off her shirt, and touched her, Susanna.
One morning when she was about to wash in the bathroom, he stood at the door with a gun behind her. She tried to cover herself with a towel but was beaten by him. “He made me sit on the edge of the bathtub. I covered my legs. I fought back. And he attacked me and pointed a gun at my face,” said Sausana. “Then he dragged me into the bedroom. He forced me to rape her at gunpoint. , is how the “New York Times” puts Susana's statement.
Torture in the Hamas tunnels
He was also later blocked in the Hamas tunnel. Here too she was beaten. The guards covered her mouth and nose, tied her legs and handcuffed her, Sausana said. She was then hung “like a chicken” on a pole between two sofas. She was in so much pain that she thought her arms would disintegrate.
According to The New York Times, Souzana's personal account of her detention experiences matches what she told two doctors and a social worker within 24 hours of her release on November 30. It was agreed that the details of the victim would not be made public.
Hamas denies coercion
Hamas has consistently denied that its terrorists committed sex crimes while attacking Israel or taking hostages. A Hamas spokesman contacted by The New York Times denied the woman's statements were credible, describing them as “constructions by (Israeli) intelligence officials.”
Victims of rape and sexual violence are traumatized and find it very difficult to speak publicly about what happened to them. The woman told the New York Times that she wanted to draw attention to the suffering of the 100 hostages still at the hands of Hamas.
Terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups attacked southern Israel on October 7. In an unprecedented massacre, they killed 1,200 people and kidnapped another 250 to the Gaza Strip. Already during the attack, the terrorists committed massive sexual crimes against the victims. The United Nations Special Representative's report considers the accounts of survivors, eyewitnesses and doctors to be reliable. The same report from early March found credible reports that sexual violence against kidnapped hostages had taken place and was still taking place.
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