Released hostage: Men also face sexual violence in Hamas captivity

During the inaugural meeting of the lobby for victims of sexualized and gender-based violence during the war, Aviva Segal and Hen Goldstein-Almog shared harrowing accounts of the enduring traumas experienced by kidnapped Israelis in Hamas captivity.

"I desperately want to return to Gaza and protect the girls, just as I did when I was there," expressed Aviva Segal, who was released after 51 days of captivity through a deal with Hamas. However, her husband Keith remains in captivity.

"It felt like these girls were my daughters. The terrorists brought clothes as if they were for dolls, and they forced the girls to put them on, treating them like dolls and doing whatever they wanted with them. It's simply unthinkable that they are still there. Almost four months have passed, and they are still enduring this ordeal."

Sigal revealed that throughout her captivity, not a single day passed without one of the hostages enduring abuse. Expressing her shock, she criticized the world's continued silence and the ongoing discussions within the War Cabinet.

"Men also experience these horrors. While they may not face the risk of pregnancy, they too undergo such traumas," she emphasized.

Hen Goldstein-Almog, who has also been released from Hamas captivity, highlighted that many abductees remain unaware of the fate of their husbands, loved ones, or communities.

She emphasized that the hostages feel forgotten by the entire world, experiencing an enduring October seventh for the past eight and a half weeks.

"Some of the girls haven't had their period for quite some time, and we all pray that their bodies will protect them from getting pregnant by their rapists," she expressed.

"We must do everything possible to bring them back."