here are times when history asks us to look at events with clear eyes, both politically and morally. The attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists crossed the Gaza border and targeted civilians, were one of those times. Along with the murders, kidnappings, and destruction, more evidence is emerging of sexual violence and gender-based brutality against women, children, and families. These accounts are now recorded in a detailed report by The Civil Commission on October 7th, Crimes by Hamas Against Women and Children, led by human rights scholar Cochav Elkayam-Levy.

The Commission’s report draws upon more than 430 testimonies, interviews, thousands of photographs, and 1,800 hours of visual evidence collected from the aftermath of the attacks on towns and kibbutzim near the Gaza border. Repeated patterns of violence that included sexual assault, mutilation, humiliation, and abuse were carried out against victims both during the initial assaults and while some were held captive in Gaza. The report argues that these acts were not isolated incidents, but part of a wider pattern of terror directed at civilians and families.

For many Jews, including those in Sarasota, the days after October 7 brought not just grief but confusion. Some groups hesitated to recognize these allegations with the same moral urgency given to victims in other places, which was sobering. Human rights should not depend on geography, politics, or identity. They must apply to everyone, or they lose their meaning. History shows that silence only adds to the trauma.

Recognizing the suffering of Israeli victims does not take away from the suffering of Palestinian civilians. Compassion is not limited. We can mourn innocent lives in Gaza and also ask for honest recognition of the crimes committed on October 7. Our shared humanity means we must hold both truths at the same time.

Today, as public conversations are often divided, empathy is too often given only to those we agree with. But condemning terrorism, rejecting sexual violence, and mourning innocent civilians should not depend on politics or ideology. We should show compassion for all human suffering, without hesitation.

In Jewish tradition, remembering is not passive. It is a sacred moral responsibility that goes beyond religion or nationality. Every society is judged not just by the victims it mourns, but also by those it chooses to ignore. Silence cannot be the final word, and this should not be controversial.