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Warning: This report contains graphic descriptions of violence and sexual assault that some readers may find disturbing.
Former hostage describes systematic abuse in Gaza
Rom Braslavski, a 21-year-old former Israeli hostage released last month, has publicly disclosed that he endured sexual assault and prolonged torture during his two-year captivity in Gaza. In an interview with Israel's Channel 13 aired Thursday, Braslavski-who was abducted during the 7 October 2023 attacks on the Nova music festival-recalled being stripped naked, bound, and subjected to repeated physical and psychological abuse by members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
"It was sexual violence, and its main purpose was humiliation," Braslavski stated. "Its goal was to crush my dignity." His account marks the first time a male hostage has publicly alleged sexual assault while held in Gaza.
Escalation after refusal to convert
Braslavski, then a soldier on leave working as a security guard, was among the 251 hostages taken during the Hamas-led assault that killed approximately 1,200 people. He described a sharp decline in treatment after he refused demands to convert from Judaism to Islam in March 2025, coinciding with the collapse of a prior ceasefire.
For three weeks, he was blindfolded, had stones forced into his ears to impair his hearing, and faced severe food and water deprivation. "They told me they'd received an order to torture me," he said. Captors tied him up, punched him, and whipped him with a metal cable-"several times a day." Braslavski recalled spiraling into despair: "I entered a loop I doubted I'd survive."
Public humiliation and sexual violence
In August 2025, PIJ released a video showing Braslavski in distress, claiming he was "at death's door" from starvation. Following its publication, he said the abuse intensified: "They stripped me of all my clothes-everything. I was naked, starving, praying to God to save me." When pressed on whether the assaults included further acts, he responded, "Yes. It's hard to talk about. It was horrific."
"You just pray for it to stop. Every day, I'd tell myself: 'I survived another day in hell. Tomorrow, I'll wake up to another.'"
Official reactions and broader allegations
Israeli President Isaac Herzog praised Braslavski's "extraordinary courage" in exposing the abuses, urging global recognition of "heinous cruelty, sexual violence, and abuse" by Gaza-based groups. At least four female hostages have previously spoken publicly about sexual abuse in captivity, per Reuters.
A PIJ official dismissed Braslavski's allegations as "incorrect" without providing details. The claims align with a March 2024 UN report citing "convincing information" of rape and sexual torture against hostages, though Hamas called the findings "baseless." A separate UN inquiry in March 2025 accused Israeli forces of gender-based violence against Palestinians, including forced nudity and threats of rape-allegations Israel deemed "unfounded."
Context: Ongoing investigations into abuse
The disclosure follows last week's resignation of Israel's former top military lawyer, who admitted leaking a video allegedly showing soldiers abusing a Palestinian detainee-including a rectal stabbing. Five soldiers face charges in the incident, which the detainee survived after medical treatment.
Braslavski was among the final 20 living hostages freed in a US-brokered ceasefire last month. Israel's military campaign in Gaza, launched in response to the 7 October attacks, has killed over 68,800 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
