Shame On The U.N. If It Can't Condemn Hamas' Rape And Murder Of Women

Warning: This article contains graphic content

Former Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg was naïve enough to believe she had a winning message that no one would dispute. As she put it, “No matter which marches you are attending – or if you are attending none at all; no matter which flag you are flying – or if you are flying none at all; no matter what religion you practice – or if you practice none at all; there is one opinion that everyone can agree on: Rape should never be used as an act of war.”

By most anyone’s standards, what she said not only makes sense but is the most basic of human values, which is demanded by all civilized societies. So, why would Sandberg feel the need to state the obvious? The answer, shockingly, is because it is no longer the obvious! How do we know? Because the deafening silence of the UN, as well as organizations devoted to the well-being and rights of women, have woefully failed to strongly condemn widespread claims of rape that we know occurred in the October 7 Hamas terror attack. 

Wasn’t it just a few short years ago that the “Me Too” movement was at its peak – screaming bloody murder over Hollywood actresses who had the misfortune of being raped and abused by the likes of mega-producer, Harvey Weinstein? Then there were also the non-stop rape accusations against prospective U.S. Supreme Court judicial candidate, Brett Kavanaugh, which, although could not be credibly substantiated, nearly prevented him from obtaining the position – not to mention the great distress that it brought to his family. Everyone jumped on that bandwagon, just on the strength of the accusation of an alleged event that had occurred more than 30 years prior.

But it’s easy to back a horse that’s in the right race. Loud voices are blared, and the resounding outrage is blasted far and wide for all to hear when the cause is popular. However, when the crime concerns Israel, those same voices fade away – not to be heard nor to condemn what is unequivocally evil and constitutes savage acts that no one should ever have to endure. 

Consequently, we find ourselves at a moment in time when the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women “has failed to condemn the horrendous sexual violence meted out onto Israeli civilians, from girls to elderly women, on October 7.”

What we are learning is that, to some, rape can be overlooked or excused if it happens to women within the Jewish state, and that sad fact testifies to the moral depravity which has taken hold in today’s society – not to mention the glaring hypocrisy that is showcased as it relates to the protections of only certain women. Our 'bad' for actually believing all women mattered. Israeli women saw the need to take it upon themselves to start their own grassroots global campaign – #MeTooUnlessUrAJew – to raise awareness about the human rights violations during the horrific Hamas terror attack.

Gil Troy, in his article entitled, “Feminists are consenting to Hamas rape culture,” states that “the feminist community remains silent.” He goes on to say that “not one gender studies department has defended even one victimized woman.” Reminding them of their slogan, in fighting oppression, is ‘silence is consent,’ Troy says that feminists have violated their principles and that the movement “is violently, silently consenting to this mass crime against women. In their silence, most leading feminists became complicit, aiding and abetting this mass attempt to dehumanize women just because they’re Jews.” 

The only thing that can be deduced from this is that a preferred political narrative is now the determining factor as to whether or not victims of brutal crimes are objectively seen to be those who were violated and abusively harmed. No longer is it predicated upon the heinous act, committed by a savage, if somehow that will diminish one’s cause.  

The conclusion is that we now live in a world where everything is relative, which is actually ludicrous given today’s Woke philosophy that aspires to see everyone on equal footing – well, perhaps not when it comes to crimes perpetrated on “the oppressors.”

But how do innocent children, mothers and young women at a party fall into the category of “the oppressors?” Even for those who hate the State of Israel, does their callous disregard extend to women who suffered a broken pelvis from the violent force of their rapists? Is anyone capable of showing any level of empathy toward violated women?  

Israel Police Chief Kobi Shabtai said, “There was humiliation through rape on the morning of October 7. There was worse evidence that we were not able to show. They cut limbs and genitals, they raped, they abused corpses. There were sadistic sexual acts.” 

Although Hamas terrorists deny having committed these acts, one eyewitness said that “she saw a gang rape at the Nova rave near Kibbutz Re’im while, at the same time, she lay down, pretending to be dead. She said she saw a woman being passed around from one man to another, all raping her before shooting her in the head. 

So where is the condemnation of these kinds of horrific crimes against women who have been dehumanized and will be haunted by horrific memories for the rest of their lives? Are they not worth defending simply because they are a member of the wrong ethnicity? Where is the collective conscience of humanity in pronouncing guilt and shame over deplorable violations that no woman, regardless of her politics, religion or background should ever experience? And where are the condemning voices amongst women’s rights organizations, as well as the UN, whose stated goal is to protect human rights and security?

Have we truly sunk to such a level that we are only willing to recognize crimes when it suits our side? 

If that is true, then we are too far gone to be repaired. That kind of heartless, apathetic disregard can only result in turning us into cold-hearted beings with no conscience or moral standing. It degrades us into a sub-human class that has no superiority over the animal kingdom. One thing is for sure. There is no justification for the existence of governing bodies or groups that hold themselves out as the guardians of the abused, because their silence is an act of abuse.

This sad reality is, perhaps, the most convincing of all reasons pointing to the fact that we desperately need to turn back to God, because, without Him, these are the depths into which we sink – caring nothing about one another. It becomes everyone for themselves. Only if you’re part of a protected class will there be sympathy – otherwise you’re out of luck.

If we cannot feel the pain of others, no matter who they are, we are nothing more than a lost cause as a species. Short of rejecting our own depravity and acknowledging our pitiful state, we might as well hang it all up. Because without God’s intervention in our lives, we will, never again, be whole people as He intended us to be from the beginning when He created us in His image.

Cookie Schwaeber-Issan is a granddaughter of European Jews who emigrated to the US before the Holocaust. A retired teacher, she made Aliyah in 1993 and lives in Israel with her husband. She writes for AllIsrael.com