GENEVA — Dr. Cochav Elkayam-Levy presented the Civil Commission's report on sexual crimes to the United Nations Human Rights Council's Annual Discussion on Women's Rights in Geneva on June 26, 2026. The report, titled 'Silenced No More,' details sexual crimes committed during the October 7 attacks and while hostages were held captive.

The 'Silenced No More' report was prepared with the cooperation of international experts in international law and human rights. It identifies 13 distinct patterns of abuse, including rape, gang rape, sexual torture, deliberate burning, and the intentional mutilation of victims' faces and genitals. The Commission coined the term 'kinocidal sexual violence' to describe "the deliberate use of sexual violence to torture families and maximize their pain and suffering."

Dr. Elkayam-Levy, Chair of the Civil Commission, called on the UN to recognize the report's findings and apply compassion without condition to ensure a double standard was not applied to Israeli women. She stated that other groups were "studying, imitating, and refining" Hamas' brutality. "We documented crimes so brutal that existing legal frameworks struggle to fully describe them," she said.

Hillel Neuer, Executive Director of UN Watch, also commented on the situation. "Israeli victims did not receive compassion or protection from this system. Instead, they were exposed to the hatred that rages throughout the world and to the institutions that enable it," Neuer said. He then posed a question to the body: "The question now is whether the United Nations will finally apply the same standards of compassion, credibility, and accountability to Israeli victims that it demands for every other victim of sexual violence."

Why It Matters

The presentation of the 'Silenced No More' report at the UN Human Rights Council's Annual Discussion on Women's Rights in Geneva highlighted documented accounts of sexual violence during the October 7 attacks and hostage captivity. The report introduces new terminology, such as 'kinocidal sexual violence,' to categorize specific types of abuse. This event represents an effort to secure recognition and consistent application of international standards of compassion and accountability for all victims of sexual violence.