A former hostage has described suffering horrific sexual abuse at the hands of Hamas terrorists while being held in Gaza.

Ilana Gritzewsky, 31, was taken from her home in an Israeli village near the Gaza border during the bloody October 7 attacks before being released during a temporary ceasefire in November 2023.

She has now told how she was groped from behind by Hamas gunmen during her abduction, with the men said to have touched her breast beneath her shirt and her legs.

Gritzewsky said she was trapped between two of the men on a motorcycle, her head and face covered with a large piece of nylon or tarpaulin, when one of them pressed her leg onto the exhaust pipe, burning it.

She passed out before they crossed the border, and when she woke up in Gaza, she said she found herself half-naked in a dilapidated building surrounded by seven gunmen.

Her shirt was up, exposing her breasts, while her trousers were pulled down, she told the New York Times.

She said she did not know what had happened to her while she was unconscious but quickly thought to tell them that she had her period.

‘They hit me and lifted me up,’ she said. ‘I felt they were disappointed… I don’t think I have ever been so thankful for my period.’

Ilana Gritzewsky, 31, was taken from her home in a village near the Gaza border during the bloody October 7 attacks. Her partner, Matan Zangauker (left) remains in captivity in Gaza

Gritzewsky (right) is seen during her release from Hamas captivity in November 2023

Released hostage Ilana Gritzewsky poses for a portrait in her apartment in Kiryat Gat, Israel, on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, near photos of her boyfriend, Matan Zangauker, who is being held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip

At one point during her ordeal, she said one of her captors, toting a pistol, hugged her and told her that even if there were a hostage deal she would not be released because he wanted to marry and have children with her.

Gritzewsky’s partner Matan Zangauker, 25, remains in captivity in Gaza after being kidnapped alongside her more than 500 days ago. 

The pair became separated as Hamas fighters shot at the door of their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, with Zangauker jumping out of the window of the safe room and attempting to flee.

During her more than 50 days in captivity, Gritzewsky was moved from place to place, initially held alone and then with other hostages.

Not knowing what had happened to her partner, she described him to one of her captors, who appeared to confirm that he was among the hostages.

She faced interrogation about her time in the Israeli army, despite completing her military duty more than a decade before after moving to Israel from Mexico aged 16.

As well as the abuse she said she suffered, she was not given any medication for a chronic digestive disease she disclosed to her captors, and said her jewellery was stolen by them.

Gritzewsky was eventually released on November 30, 2023, during a week-long ceasefire alongside many other women and children hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Ilana Gritzewsky is comforted after speaking about her experiences as a hostage during a discussion with the House Foreign Affairs Committee on February 12, 2025 in Washington

When she was assessed back in Israel, it was discovered that she had suffered a broken hip.

Avigail Poleg-Dvir, who has been Gritzewsky’s therapist since her release, confirmed to the New York Times that she had shared the main details of her abduction and abuse throughout their sessions.

A United Nations report released last year found evidence that sexual violence had been committed on multiple occasions during the Hamas-led October 7 attacks on Israel.

The same report also found that some hostages held in Gaza had been subjected to rape and sexual torture.

Gritzewsky has become a leading figure in the anti-government protests in Israel

Gritzewsky and her partner’s mother have become leading figures in the anti-government protests in Israel, advocating for a swift return of Zangauker and the other remaining hostages.

‘I live with the question of why me and not them. I have no answer,’ she told the NYT.

‘But if I am out, it’s a sign that God wanted me to raise my voice to help those who are alive gain their freedom and bring back the dead for a proper burial.’