Why are eyewitness accounts of Hamas’ brutality not enough?

I was privileged to be at a showing of Sheryl Sandberg’s documentary, Screams Before Silence, which, through multiple interviews, reveals the extreme sexual violence committed by Hamas on October 7th, 2023, and beyond. The showing was hosted by Hadassah Metro, an East Coast branch of Hadassah; the American Muslim Multifaith Women’s Empowerment Council (AMMWEC); and the Marlene Meyerson Jewish Community Center Manhattan, with the support of many other partners.

Sandberg’s documentary presents numerous testimonies— from hostages who were raped and subsequently released by Hamas; from first responders, who, in finding women’s corpses, witnessed the result of this brutality; and from forensic experts who examined the bodies to determine who these women were. Many faces, we learn, were burned beyond recognition. Only DNA could reveal their identity.

Hadassah National President Carol Ann Schwartz and Anila Ali, President and CEO of AMMWEC, at the post-screening question and answer session. Photo courtesy of Hadassah.

Nova Music Festival Memorial Site. Photo courtesy of Hadassah.

As you can imagine, it was difficult to internalize the fact that even a terrorist could so viciously mutilate another human being. Who would even think to hammer nails into a woman’s vagina?

Another question that haunts me from that evening is “How could anyone doubt that this violence took place?” My question comes in response to a comment from a man in the audience. He said he has spoken with many people who still do not believe this sexual abuse occurred and, because of that, we must show the world the victims’ abused bodies and body parts. At the end of the 57-minute film, there was a post-script informing viewers that the film’s creators chose not to show the mutilated bodies out of respect for the victims and their families. The man said he understood the desire to respect the families but that there was the more pressing need to convince people that this sexual violence was real.

In case you haven’t seen the film and are wondering about the title, Screams Before Silence, I am sure it comes from the testimonies of those hostages who said they heard the screams of other women as they were being raped and then, suddenly, silence; the women could no longer scream because, once raped, they had been murdered.

On a more hopeful note, as Hadassah continues to speak out through its #EndTheSilence campaign, it was uplifting to learn that AMMWEC, too, is working to end the silence about Hamas’ weaponization of sexual violence. As Hadassah National President Carol Ann Schwartz said that evening, “We are so much more powerful when we work together.” She urged us all to speak even louder on behalf of the women who were sexually violated as a weapon of war. Schwartz told us that she and AMMWEC President Anila Ali met at a preview screening of the Sandberg documentary and realized they needed to join forces to ensure that the world holds Hamas accountable for these sexual crimes. Ali noted passionately, “We are your allies. We are your voice and you are ours.”

To quote from AMMWEC’s website, part of its mission is to “confront bigotry in all its forms, celebrate cultural heritage and build enduring bonds with fellow Americans of all faiths.”

As I have flashbacks to that evening, I continue to ask myself, “Do people really need to see gruesome photographs to believe that Hamas committed those horrific acts of sexual violence?” After all, isn’t hearing a rape victim describe the violence enough to convince people that it really happened? If people don’t believe the testimony of the victims, will the pictures convince them? Or will they still inhabit a cloud of disbelief, arguing, perhaps, that it was all somehow staged?

Holocaust denial offers an eerie parallel. The website of the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles explains that Holocaust deniers “claim that survivors of the Holocaust lied about their experiences, that Allied soldiers who liberated the camps exaggerated what they saw, that the films and photos of Nazi atrocities—even those captured from the Nazis themselves—were made up later.”

Now we are faced with new skeptics—this time, it is about the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas instead of Hitler.

Will seeing those pictures change the mind of these skeptics? What do you think?