President Biden publicly condemns Hamas for the rape of Israeli women, blames Hamas’ refusal to return additional captives for the renewed fighting.
By World Israel News Staff
President Joe Biden spoke out Tuesday on the systematic use of sexual violence by Gaza terrorists during the October 7th invasion, condemning Hamas for the rape of Israeli women while also blaming the terror group for the resumption of fighting after last week’s ceasefire.
Speaking at a campaign event in Boston Tuesday, the president called for leaders around the world to publicly condemn Hamas, amid evidence suggesting that the rape of Israeli women – and men – was not a rare occurrence during the October 7th invasion, but appeared to be systematic.
“Hamas terrorists have caused so much pain and suffering for women and young girls,” Biden said.
“The world cannot be silent. It is our responsibility to condemn the Hamas terrorists’ sexual violence.”
“We have reports from the first days after the Hamas attack of women being raped during the attack and in the past weeks. Survivors and witnesses have given horrific accounts of unimaginable cruelty.”
“These women suffered repeated rapes and their bodies being mutilated while still alive, of women corpses being desecrated, and Hamas terrorists inflicting as much pain and suffering as – on women and girls – as possible and then murdering them. It’s appalling.”
“But the world can’t just look away,” Biden continued.
“It’s on all of us — the government, international organizations, civil society, individual citizens — to forcefully condemn the sexual violence of Hamas terrorists without equivocation — without equivocation, without exception.”
The president also placed the onus on Hamas for the failure to further extend last week’s seven-day ceasefire, which expired early Friday morning.
Just prior to the ceasefire’s end, Hamas terrorists operating in the Gaza Strip violated the ceasefire, launching multiple rockets towards southern Israel.
In his comments in Boston Tuesday, Biden noted that the terror group also failed to deliver on its pledge to release Israeli women and children held captive.
“Let’s be clear, Hamas’ refusal to release the women caused the renewal of fighting.”
“All hostages still held by Hamas must be immediately released and returned to their families. We won’t stop.”
“The women who are held there are mostly citizens aged 20-39 and Hamas refuses to release them, contrary to the agreements we reached via the Qataris.”
Earlier this week, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller suggested during a press conference that Hamas won’t free the remaining women because they don’t want them to talk about possible sex crimes in captivity.
“The fact that they continue to hold women, hostages, the fact that they continue to hold children, hostages, just the fact that it seems one of the reasons they don’t want to turn women over they’ve been holding hostage, and the reason this pause fell apart, is they don’t want those women to be able to talk about what happened to them during their time in custody.”