TEL AVIV, Israel (FN) — Romi Gonen, a 23-year-old Israeli woman held hostage in Gaza for more than 15 months, has spoken publicly for the first time about enduring repeated sexual abuse during her captivity and living in constant fear of becoming a “sex slave.”
Gonen was abducted on Oct. 7, 2023, during the Hamas-led attack on the Nova music festival. She was released in January 2025 as part of a hostage deal after 471 days in captivity. In an interview broadcast Sunday on Israel’s Channel 12 program Uvda, she described being assaulted by multiple men, including one who posed as a medic while treating her gunshot wound.
“They told me, ‘If you tell anyone, I’ll kill you,’” Gonen said. “I cried and froze. I couldn’t move. I thought they would keep me forever.”
Her testimony adds to mounting evidence of sexual violence committed against hostages during the Oct. 7 attacks and their aftermath. Israeli officials and rights groups have accused Hamas of using rape and sexual assault systematically, a charge Hamas denies. Gonen said senior Hamas figures offered to prioritize her release if she agreed not to speak publicly about the abuse. “No one will tell me to stay quiet,” she said. “I won.”
Historians and human rights experts say Gonen’s account reflects a broader pattern in which sexual violence has been used as a weapon of war. From Bosnia in the 1990s to Rwanda’s genocide and conflicts in Africa and the Middle East, rape has been deployed to terrorize populations, enforce displacement and destroy community bonds. International tribunals have recognized sexual violence as a war crime and crime against humanity, and the United Nations has repeatedly warned that such acts are not incidental but often deliberate strategies of armed groups.
Survivors of sexual violence in conflict often face lasting psychological scars, including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and dissociation. Experts say recovery depends heavily on support systems and recognition of the abuse. “Speaking out is a critical step,” said Yael Sherer, director of the Israeli Center for Victims of Sexual Assault. “It validates survivors and ensures these crimes are not erased from history.”
Gonen’s testimony is likely to intensify international debate over Hamas’s treatment of hostages and the role of sexual violence in armed conflict. Israeli officials have urged global institutions to investigate the allegations, while human rights groups say survivors’ voices must remain central to accountability efforts. For Gonen, breaking her silence was both a personal act of defiance and a call for recognition. “I survived,” she said. “Now the world needs to know what happened.”
