Confronted by pro-Hamas supporters in Washington, D.C., Florida Rep. Byron Donalds schooled the small group on the barbarism that took place in Israel on Oct. 7 at the hands of Hamas.
“They’ve (Hamas) embedded their soldiers among the civilian population. Israel does not do that. America does not do that because it is a violation of the Geneva Convention. The Geneva Convention is clear that if you have soldiers, who are embedded amongst the civilian population, and there is an attack against the soldiers of civilians, die, it is not the fault of the other country,” said Donalds.
“It is the fault of the country that has embedded their soldiers amongst the civilian population. This is the reason our soldiers wear uniforms. This is the reason why our soldiers are on bases and not embedded in our apartment buildings and other sensitive structures, sensitive to civilians,” said Donalds.
“But this could all end if Hamas and their leadership surrenders. They refuse. And we have to acknowledge that. It is Hamas that engaged in butchery and barbarism on October 7th,” said Donalds.
“When a pregnant woman has her womb cut wide open…” said Donalds before one of the protesters interrupted him, saying, “Lies.”
The protesters laughed at Donalds’ statements adding, “Please educate yourself in the propaganda.”
“I’ve seen the footage & personally met survivors. Hamas engaged in UNSPEAKABLE war crimes on 10/7 & continues to flagrantly violate the Geneva Convention by using human shields. This can all end if Hamas surrenders. They REFUSE. Israel has a responsibility to obliterate Hamas,” said Donalds on X.
According to the United Nations (U.N.) on Monday, Hamas raped and sexually abused the hostages it took during the terrorist attack against Israel on October 7 that resulted in the deaths of 1,200 civilians.
Numerous eyewitness reports and an extensive investigation by Israel concluded that Hamas was responsible for a large-scale sexual assault during the Oct. 7 attacks.
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According to a U.N. investigation, the findings of which were made public on Monday, there is now “clear and convincing information” that Hamas carried out these same crimes against the hostages it returned to Gaza, “including rape and sexualized torture and sexualized cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.”
Over 130 hostages are still held in Gaza as of right now; however, it’s unclear how many of them are still alive. The U.N. claims that sexual violence by Hamas against the hostages “may be ongoing.”
A group of U.N. officials assembled the investigation after holding 33 private meetings with Israeli officials and 34 interviews in confidence with first responders, survivors, and liberated hostages following the Hamas attacks on October 7. It also looked through fifty hours of video and five thousand photos.
The investigation also revealed that on October 7, Hamas raped and gang-raped victims in a number of places, including the Nova music festival site, the area around Road 232, and Kibbutz Re’im. According to the U.N., “victims first subjected to rape were then killed, and at least two incidents relate to the rape of women’s corpses.” This describes the majority of cases.
According to the U.N. inquiry report, “it may take months or years to emerge and may never be fully known as to the true prevalence of sexual violence during the 7 October attacks and their aftermath.”
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