Human Rights Voices

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Palestinian Authority/Gaza, October 8, 2023

German festival-goer identified as young woman whose naked body was paraded by Hamas

Original source

The Telegraph

A young tattoo artist has been identified as the woman whose naked body was paraded through the streets of Gaza by Hamas terrorists after their attack on Israel on Saturday.

Shani Louk, 23, was among the hundreds of victims caught in the crossfire as terrorists stormed an outdoor dance party near Kibbutz Urim, close to the border with Gaza.

More than 300 Israelis were killed, with 2,000 injured and 100 kidnapped during the surprise assault by the Islamist group.

As footage of the early stages of the raid circulated online, family members recognised the 23-year-old girl as one of the victims.

A video clip, too disturbing to publish, showed Ms Louk’s motionless body in the back of a pick-up truck as Hamas fighters sat on her.

Jubilant crowds surrounded the armed men in combat fatigues, who shouted “Allah Akbar” from the open back of the vehicle.

Some in the crowd appeared to spit on the woman’s body before the truck sped off into the distance.

Tom Weintraub Louk confirmed her cousin was missing after the terrorists overran the dance party on Saturday morning.

“We knew she was in the party. She didn’t answer,” she told The Washington Post.

While she refused to watch the purported video of her cousin in the hands of terrorists, other family members recognised Ms Louk’s distinctive tattoos and dreadlocks.

The video appears to show the 23-year-old’s black, patterned chevron tattooed on her lower leg, just below her knee, which is prominent in many of her posts on social media.

After more than 24 hours, it is unknown whether Ms Louk is dead or where she is.

“We have some kind of hope,” her cousin said. “Hamas is responsible for her and the others.”

The 23-year-old is a dual German-Israeli citizen, according to reports. Pictures published on her social media accounts show her in Germany and describing Israel as “home”.

A video published by Bild, Germany’s largest newspaper, appeared to show Ms Louk’s mother, Ricarda, confirming her daughter’s kidnap.

“This morning my daughter, Shani Nicole Louk, a German citizen, was kidnapped with a group of tourists in southern Israel by Palestinian Hamas.

“We were sent a video in which I could clearly see our daughter unconscious in the car with the Palestinians and them driving around the Gaza Strip. I ask you to send us any help or any news. Thank you very much.”

The Telegraph has contacted the family.

The German foreign ministry said: “The Federal Foreign Office and the German embassy in Tel Aviv are in close contact with the Israeli authorities in order to clarify whether and to what extent German citizens are affected.”