I appreciate that this is an opinion column. However, Mr. Bezmozgis’ claim that ‘systematic sexual and gender-based violence” occurred on October 7 is not factually based and relies on a report whose findings have been subject to substantial criticism and debunked by credible researchers.
Dear Mr. Bezmozgis, Ms. Martin and Mr. Walmsley,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) regarding the column, “Why is a Canadian literary magazine supporting ‘armed resistance’?” that was published in print and online in The Globe and Mail on June 9, 2026.
I am concerned about the following sentence: She takes inspiration, in part, from the Palestinian writer Abdaljawad Omar, who published an essay on Nov. 8, 2023, minimizing the established facts about Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, which killed about 1,200 people and involved systematic sexual and gender-based violence and the abduction of 251 people into Gaza.
I appreciate that this is an opinion column. However, Mr. Bezmozgis’ claim that ‘systematic sexual and gender-based violence” occurred on October 7 is not factually based and relies on a report whose findings have been subject to substantial criticism and debunked by credible researchers.
The source for Mr. Bezmozgis’ allegation of ‘systematic sexual and gender-based violence’ is the report, Silenced No More Sexual Terror Unveiled: The Untold Atrocities of October 7 and Against Hostages in Captivity. Many of the claims in this report have been disputed. Cochav Elkayam-Levy, the founder of the non-profit organization that prepared the report, has faced credibility concerns, including criticism from Israeli officials over the circulation of false and misleading information. Furthermore, neither the UN Commission of Inquiry nor subsequent investigations by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, were able to verify specific instances of rape on October 7. CJPME has published an essay that summarizes the concerns and questions that have been raised.
The Globe and Mail has a responsibility to provide opinion articles that are supported by evidence and facts. This article falls short of meeting that standard. In uncritically sharing the findings of this report, the Globe and Mail is effectively lending credibility to a document that reads more as propaganda rather than evidence-based research.
I respectfully urge the Globe and Mail to review the article and revise it to address the concern I’ve expressed.
I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Debbie Hubbard