Sen. Fetterman: Condemn Hamas 'Rapists and Cowards'

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., on Wednesday slammed members of Congress and the United Nations for refusing to condemn Hamas for actions taken against hostages and Israelis, pointing to a released hostage's account of the sexual assault she survived and calling for action to be taken.

"Some members of Congress won't condemn this," Fetterman wrote in a post on X, where he also shared The New York Times' reporting about the hostage, Amit Soussana.

"Some dismissed this as 'propaganda,'" he added. "The UN won't even condemn Hamas. Hamas is not a group of 'militants' or engaging in 'insurgency' — just rapists and cowards hiding behind innocent civilians."

In the article, Soussana, one of 250 hostages kidnapped during the Hamas attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, accused the terrorists of the beatings and sexual assault while she was in custody.

Soussana was among the roughly 100 hostages released in November during a week-long temporary cease-fire deal and is the first former hostage to accuse the terrorists of sexual assault.

She said she was repeatedly beaten and kept in various homes as well as the Hamas underground tunnels, The Post reported Tuesday.

She said that one of the guards, who called himself Muhammad, would at times lift her shirt and touch her, and that after some days went by she was permitted to take a bath, after which he forced her to "commit a sexual attack on him" while he pointed a gun at her.

Soussana had lived in Kibbutz Kfar Azza, near the Gaza border. Her house was set on fire and she said about 10 men pulled her out and dragged her to Gaza, although she tried to fight back.

Although Soussana is the first hostage to speak out about being sexually assaulted, earlier this month U.N. officials said they found "clear and convincing" evidence that Hamas members committed acts of sexual violence against the hostages, including sexual torture, rape, and inhumane, degrading treatment, and that there are grounds to believe the violence continues against the hostages.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, also spoke out about Soussana's story, saying that he will "never understand why the Left loves Hamas and defends its cruel, barbaric misogyny."