[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 505 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 505

 Condemning the use of sexual violence and rape as a weapon of war by 
        the terrorist group Hamas against the people of Israel.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 14, 2023

 Mrs. Shaheen (for herself, Mrs. Britt, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mrs. Fischer, 
  Mr. Fetterman, Ms. Collins, Mr. Casey, Mr. Warnock, Mr. Ossoff, Mr. 
King, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Murphy, 
Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Kaine, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Warner, Ms. Rosen, Ms. 
Hassan, Mr. Bennet, and Mr. Peters) submitted the following resolution; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Condemning the use of sexual violence and rape as a weapon of war by 
        the terrorist group Hamas against the people of Israel.

Whereas, on October 7, 2023, the terrorist organization Hamas--

    (1) attacked communities, military installations, and a music festival 
in southern Israel;

    (2) killed approximately 1,200 people; and

    (3) seized more than 200 hostages;

Whereas evidence that emerged in the first days after such attacks indicates 
        that Hamas fighters deliberately used sexual violence against women and 
        children;
Whereas Israeli police have gathered evidence from more than 1,500 women and men 
        in Israel--

    (1) who reported being sexually assaulted during such attacks;

    (2) who were witness to such sexual assaults; or

    (3) whose sexual assaults have been medically documented;

Whereas while gender-based violence is prevalent in many conflict settings--

    (1) such violence is almost always severely underreported during and 
after a conflict; and

    (2) the United Nations estimates that, in conflict areas, for every 
rape that is reported, between 10 and 20 cases of sexual violence are not 
reported;

Whereas the Civil Commission on October 7 Crimes by Hamas Against Women And 
        Children, which seeks to document the sexual and gender-based atrocities 
        committed on October 7, 2023, reported that it is unable to accurately 
        estimate the number of such victims in part because many of them were 
        killed during the Hamas attacks;
Whereas the victims of the deliberate use of sexual violence as a weapon to wage 
        war against Israel are men and women of all ages, including children, 
        teenagers, and the elderly;
Whereas eyewitness testimony reports that women at the Tribe of Nova music 
        festival were gang-raped, tortured, mutilated, and executed;
Whereas Israeli officials have documented extensive sexual abuse of corpses;
Whereas reports from released hostages held by Hamas for more than a month 
        indicate that women and men were subjected to sexual violence while in 
        captivity;
Whereas the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in 
        Time of War, done at Geneva August 12, 1949 (commonly referred to as the 
        ``Fourth Geneva Convention''), recognizes rape in conflict settings as a 
        war crime; and
Whereas sexual violence is used in many conflict settings as a tool to 
        humiliate, control, oppress, and defeat women and the communities to 
        which they belong: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) honors the memories of all the victims of the October 
        7, 2023, terrorist attacks perpetrated by Hamas, including 
        those who were victims of sexual violence, and stands with the 
        survivors, their families, and the families of all the 
        deceased;
            (2) condemns in the strongest terms the deliberate use of 
        gender-based violence against women and children in Israel 
        during the terrorist attacks on October 7, 2023;
            (3) calls upon the international community--
                    (A) to prioritize the elimination of gender-based 
                violence in conflict settings;
                    (B) to respond to the testimonials of victims and 
                recognize and condemn gender-based violence in conflict 
                settings as soon as it is reported; and
                    (C) to take every possible step to end the 
                widespread use of rape as a weapon of war;
            (4) demands accountability for the perpetrators of rape as 
        a weapon of war and justice for their victims; and
            (5) stands with the women and girls of Israel, the victims 
        of the heinous attacks of October 7, and all who have suffered 
        rape as a weapon of war.
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