UN Rapporteur's report accuses Israel of 'femicide,' omits Jewish victims

A new United Nations report on violence against women and girls accuses Israel of "femicide, reproductive violence, and using attacks on mothers as a tool of genocide." The 22-page report, titled 'Violence Against Mothers,' was issued by UN Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem.

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mothers are attacked and killed with the intent of destroying a group in whole or in part, including through femicide in contexts such as the Gaza Strip or Afghanistan.

However, critics point out that the report presents contested allegations as established facts. It also entirely omits the experiences of Israeli women and mothers who were affected by the October 7 Hamas attacks. The report defines mothers as women or girls who have given birth, are pregnant, or have adopted children.

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reproductive violence is also increasingly reported in conflict, disproportionately affecting mothers, including as a tool of genocide in Myanmar and the Sudan, as well as the State of Palestine.

In a section on conflicts and crises, Alsalem writes that "mothers are attacked and killed with the intent of destroying a group in whole or in part, including through femicide in contexts such as the Gaza Strip or Afghanistan." The report also states that "reproductive violence is also increasingly reported in conflict, disproportionately affecting mothers, including as a tool of genocide in Myanmar and the Sudan, as well as the State of Palestine."

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in the first one hundred days of the Israeli invasion of Gaza after 7 October 2023, on average, two mothers were killed every hour

Alsalem further claims that "in the first one hundred days of the Israeli invasion of Gaza after 7 October 2023, on average, two mothers were killed every hour" and that "Palestinian mothers and their children were specifically targeted by Israel with genocidal language." This statistic is based on casualty data reported by the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. The report also mentions the destruction of Gaza's largest fertility clinic, the Al-Basma IVF Centre, in 2023, where thousands of embryos were destroyed.

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Palestinian mothers and their children were specifically targeted by Israel with genocidal language.