Meirav Leshem Gonen, the mother of 23-year-old Romi Gonen, who is being held captive in Gaza, spoke before the UN Human Rights Council's Commission of Inquiry against Israel in Geneva on Wednesday. "When women’s bodies are used as political tools, when their dignity is set aside because they are not on the ‘right side,’ it is a badge of shame for us all," she told the council.
Gonen continued to criticize the drafting of the report, which she said ignores the plight of the hostages. Typically, Israel does not participate in the committee's sessions, but the families of the hostages seized this opportunity.
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Meirav Leshem Gonen
(Photo: Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations in Geneva)
"Trying to escape from their murderous hands, she was shot while driving in a car with three other young people," said the mother, who listened to the attack over the phone as it was happening. "As the only survivor, she was brutally draggedby her long, beautiful hair from the car, along the road. I was a witness to this reality while speaking with her on the phone, hearing her helplessness and frustration without being able to help my baby. That was 257 days ago. Romi and 119 hostages are still being held without communication in the Gaza Strip to this day."
Meirav Leshem Gonen speaks at the UN
(Video: Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations in Geneva)
"Twenty-three-year-old girls should not be taken hostage, no one should. Mr. President, we should be on the same side. The side fighting hostage taking, never accepting the use of young women as political tools. I hope my Romi still believes in the free world, still believes in us, and still believes that together we will end the nightmare she is in. I believe we can do more for them, we can do better for them; the hostages need us, and the world needs them, please help me hug my daughter again."