No Reports of Sexual Assault or Abortion on Two Female Captives Held by Hamas
The Claim
A 13-year-old Jewish Israeli hostage was raped in captivity! She went through an urgent abortion. Another Israeli woman who was released from Palestinian captivity had gone through a rape test, which discovered 67 different sperm DNA.
News posted on
Emerging story
Recently, social media accounts and pages on Facebook and X have been circulating information attributed to an anonymous report. According to this report, a 13-year-old Israeli captive who had an abortion was raped and another hostage had 67 different sperm samples found on her following their release in an exchange deal between Hamas and Israel.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the circulating claim and found it to be fake. Misbar found no reports corroborating the alleged assaults, nor were there any reported pregnancy cases following the release of Israeli female captives held by the Palestinian resistance during the exchange agreements between Israel and Hamas in last November. Furthermore, no reputable media sources reported the discovery of 67 sperm samples in a released Israeli captive or the fact that another captive underwent an abortion.
Misbar found that the source of the circulated information was a statement by a French activist, who later apologized for it.
The Two Released Captives Are Mia Schem and Amit Soussana
The attached photo shows the two captives, Mia Schem and Amit Soussana, who were released in the seventh and final installment of the prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel late last November.
No report mentioned any sexual assault on the two released female captives during their time in the Gaza Strip.
Claims by French Activist Sandra Ifrah Regarding Sexual Assault Incidents
The claims gained widespread attention after activist Sandra Ifrah, spokesperson for Women United for Peace, stated that 67 different sperm samples were discovered on a hostage held captive by Hamas. She further claimed that there was a 13-and-a-half-year-old hostage who needed to be aborted after being raped.
The statement was made by the prominent feminist activist, known for her support of Israel, during her appearance on the French channel CNews' “180MinutesInfo” program on February 7. This occurred following her participation in a memorial ceremony for the French victims of the October 7 attacks, presided over by French President Emmanuel Macron.
However, Misbar clarified in a previous report that the statements made by the French activist lack credibility as they are not based on any reliable source. However, neither Hebrew nor Western media outlets reported on the two incidents.
Also, no cases of pregnancy resulting from rape have been reported since the return of 120 hostages from captivity at the end of last November. There have been no reports of 67 sperm found in a released hostage.
In addition, the activist posted an apology on her X account on Thursday, February 8, stating, “Under the influence of emotion when I left the memorial ceremony, I reported on the rumors that were circulating around. That was a mistake. I apologize.” “We will be more vigilant in the future,” she added.
Despite the activist's apology and clarification that the statement was erroneous, Israeli accounts supporting the Israeli narrative continue to circulate the information contained in the statement. They attribute it to a report without providing any details about its source.
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