Hamas urges international community to protect Palestinian women from Israeli ‘atrocities’

By Nour Abuaisha and Ikram Kouachi

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Saturday called on the international community and its institutions to safeguard Palestinian women from ongoing “Israeli atrocities.”

“The world's observance of this day serves as an opportunity to expose the crimes committed by Israel against Palestinian women,” Hamas said in a statement on International Women's Day.

The movement emphasized that “Palestinian women have been subjected to savage bombings, daily massacres, displacement, forced exile, detention, and torture during Israel’s ongoing offensive.”

The statement further noted that “more than 12,000 Palestinian women have been martyred, with thousands more injured and detained, and hundreds of thousands forced to flee their homes.”

Hamas said that these acts are a “stain on humanity, particularly for those who claim to protect women’s rights,” holding them responsible for the continued violation of these rights.

It also condemned the treatment of Palestinian female prisoners in Israeli jails, where they are subjected to “the most heinous forms of physical and psychological torture.”

The group criticized the double standards of the US administration and some Western countries in addressing the issue of prisoners’ rights.

The movement called on women worldwide to “continue their activism in support of Palestinian women’s resilience, advocating for the liberation of Palestine, Jerusalem, and Gaza.”

Furthermore, Hamas demanded the international community to “take action to protect Palestinian women from Israel’s systematic and ongoing crimes.”

The Gaza Strip has been devastated by the Israeli war, with women and children bearing the brunt of the violence. Together, they have represented 70% of the total death toll, which reached 46,960 by Jan. 19, 2025, according to a report by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.

A ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement has been in place in Gaza since Jan. 19, halting Israel’s brutal war, which has killed over 48,400 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its military campaign.