Israel leads development of first UN toolkit on documenting terror-related sexual violence

Israel's Foreign Ministry has initiated and is leading the development of a guide designed to help emergency responders identify, document, and preserve evidence of sexual and gender-based violence at the sites of terrorist attacks.

The 'Toolkit for First Emergency Responders in Sexual and Gender Based Violence Cases Linked to Terrorism', written alongside the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), will be the first of its kind.

It was inspired by research by Prof. Yifat Biton, President of Achva Academic College, and the head of the RAIA Project - an Israeli research organization and advocacy group dedicated to combating sexual violence in terrorism contexts.

Bitton was one of the key figures in "The Civil Commission on October 7 Crimes by Hamas against Women and Children," a group dedicated to exposing and documenting sexual crimes during those attacks. She also wrote the a 100-page report, "Challenges in Identifying and Documenting Sexual Crimes Committed During A Terrorist Attack," in 2024, which was later presented to diplomats and senior officials at the UN.

Israel is partnering with the governments of Germany and Switzerland and Nigeria’s National Counter Terrorism Center for the project.

The goal of the new guide is to provide medical personnel, police officers, and emergency volunteers with practical tools to document crimes and preserve evidence that could help bring perpetrators to justice, while safeguarding survivors' safety, dignity, and privacy and ensuring they receive appropriate care and assistance.

It is expected to be adopted by international humanitarian organizations, including UN agencies, as early as the beginning of 2027.

Project aims to support victims, secure justice

During a recent strategy meeting held in Abuja, Nigeria, on October 20 and 21, Israel's Foreign Ministry was represented by Sarah Weiss Ma'udi, Israel's special envoy for Women, Peace and Security.

"This project represents international diplomacy at its best: countries sharing expertise and methods of action in a professional and practical manner to support victims and help secure justice for them and their families," said Weiss Ma'udi, adding that Israel is proud to contribute its experience while also learning from global experts.

Weiss Maudi added that, following October 7 and the "world's disregard for the crimes Hamas committed against Israeli women and men," it has become even clearer to her "how important it is to travel to Nigeria, unequivocally condemn the terrorism perpetrated by Boko Haram and other organizations, and express solidarity with the female and male survivors and victims."

Opportunity to collect evidence may rest with first responders

During the first UNODC Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on the development of the guide (held on 5–6 May 2026 in Vienna, Austria), the Chief of UNODC’s Terrorism Prevention Branch, Roberto Arbitrio, said: “The best opportunity to collect unspoiled evidence may lie precisely with first emergency responders. Yet they are seldom trained to identify and document SGBV in such circumstances, or even to recognize the possibility that such crimes may have occurred.”

Arbitrio highlighted the importance of equipping first emergency responders with the knowledge and tools needed to recognize and preserve evidence of sexual gender-based violence linked to terrorism, and thanked the Governments of Israel and Switzerland for making the guide possible.