Anne Bayefsky, a leading expert on the United Nations, slammed the world body for its failure to address the sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists against Israeli hostages, criticizing its lack of action and apparent bias.
JERUSALEM — The United Nations has been heavily criticized for its apparent inaction and bias in addressing the grave situation of Israeli hostages held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. Leading human rights expert Anne Bayefsky has accused the U.N. of failing to confront the issue and of protecting Hamas perpetrators from accountability.
Bayefsky, the director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust, pointed out that the U.N. has not sent a single official to address the Security Council about the sexual atrocities committed by Hamas against Israeli hostages during its invasion of Israel on Oct. 7.
According to a report in the Times of Israel, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Pramila Patten withdrew from a slated appearance before the informal Security Council meeting on the hostage crisis. Diplomats suggested that the withdrawal was politically motivated, with pressure being exerted to prioritize the plight of Palestinians over the Israeli hostages.
The meeting, organized by the U.S. mission to the U.N., is the first to focus exclusively on the hostage situation. Israel's Ambassador Gilad Erdan stated that the meeting aimed to discuss ways to expedite the release of hostages and pressure Hamas.
However, Bayefsky expressed dismay at the U.N.'s lack of tangible action. She pointed out that U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has refused to include Hamas on the annual list of parties suspected of committing sexual violence, despite clear evidence of its involvement.
Other U.N. officials, such as U.N. Special Rapporteurs Francesca Albanese and Reem Alsalem, have been accused of promoting the false narrative that Israelis have committed similar abuses against Palestinians.
Bayefsky highlighted the Jordanian Reem Alsalem's statement that failed to explicitly condemn Hamas for its sexual violence against Israeli women and girls. She emphasized that the truth is often obscured and unfashionable within U.N. circles.
Fox News Digital had previously reported on Alsalem's refusal to comment on Hamas' atrocities, despite her press release focusing on alleged violence against Palestinian women.
The Israeli government has repeatedly urged Guterres to resign for his alleged failures to confront Hamas terrorism and its sexual crimes. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused Guterres of aligning with Hamas by omitting its sexual violence in a report.
Farhan Aziz Haq, a spokesman for Guterres, rejected the criticism, stating that the Secretary-General had condemned the killings, rapes, and abductions from the outset. He also mentioned Pramila Patten's visit to Israel and briefings to the Security Council on her findings.
When contacted by Fox News Digital, a spokesman for Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the United States ambassador to the United Nations, declined to comment on Patten's attendance.
