An inter-ministerial Israeli delegation led by Justice Ministry Director General Itamar Donenfeld and Israel's ambassador to UN institutions in Geneva appeared before the UN The Committee Against Torture (CAT) on Wednesday.
Video: The Siegels appearing at the United Nations on November 12, 2025
During the session, Donenfeld presented Israel's complete commitment to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, urged committee members to adhere to facts and law, and requested they avoid echoing antisemitic propaganda.
He stated, "The testimonies we heard here today aren't just personal stories – they're a moral and legal indictment against the world's silence. The State of Israel is fully committed to the principles of the Convention for the Prevention of Torture and ensuring human dignity wherever it may be."
He continued, "This commitment can't be one-sided. The international community's silence facing torture, kidnappings, and abuse violates the very spirit of the Convention. The Convention mustn't remain just a document – it must be a moral compass demanding action."
Keith Siegel testified, "I'm not asking for your mercy. I'm asking you to ensure the horrors the terrorists committed against me and others in captivity never happen again." He recounted being held captive for 50 days alongside his wife Aviva until her release, then held sometimes with other captives and sometimes in complete isolation.
In total, he spent roughly six months entirely alone. "At 66, cut off from the world, terrified, not knowing what happened to my loved ones. Just for 'amusement,' the guards would compare our body parts with another captive's, threaten us with knives, humiliate us, prevent us from using the bathroom until we couldn't hold it anymore."
He added, "Every basic human right was stripped from me. I was starved and even denied water. More than once, terrorists forced me to strip before them and shaved my body."
Aviva Siegel, Keith's wife, also testified before the committee. "When we were taken underground in Gaza, there was a child from my community. The Hamas terrorists bound his hands with plastic cuffs. He was covered in blood, we were covered in blood, and afterward, when one of the terrorists came to remove his cuffs, he cut his hand. I wanted to scream, and I saw the terrorist smiling while doing it."
She continued, "For 51 days, I was certain I'd die any moment. They threatened me, starved me, gave me insufficient water, I lost 10 kilograms (22 pounds) in 51 days. I'd hide food for Keith. I saw him, he lost weight. We lost weight while the terrorists gained weight – they ate and chewed before us while giving us nothing."
She further described, "One day, one of the young women emerged from the shower trembling. I wasn't permitted to hug her, but I hugged her regardless. After some time, she told us one of the terrorists touched her entire body and did whatever he wanted with her. There was also another young woman taken by a terrorist to the shower, told to undress, and forced to perform oral sex on him and smile afterward."
She added, "Additionally, a 16-year-old girl was forced to shower before one of the terrorists. She's 16 – she'd never shown her body to anyone, and a Hamas terrorist just stood there, looked at her, and smiled."
Aviva described the helplessness in captivity. "The terrible thing for me was watching them torture my husband Keith and what they did to the girls. I was forbidden to hug, offer help, or cry. I tried constantly to maintain my humanity. They forced us to lie down from 5:00 p.m. until 9:00 a.m. the next morning, we were forbidden to move. My body ached, I wanted to stretch, sit, scream 'Just let me sit five minutes' – they wouldn't allow it. They threatened to kill me."
She continued, "One night I extended my leg from under the blanket, a Hamas terrorist came and screamed at me that I'm not allowed to do that. It sounds like something small, but that's the control level they had over us constantly. Most of the time I suffered stomach pains and diarrhea because they gave us contaminated water. I'm 62 and had to request permission to use the bathroom."
Justice Ministry Director General Donenfeld thanked the delegation members for their professional and dedicated work throughout the recent period, given the numerous challenges they faced. The Israeli delegation included senior representatives from the Justice Ministry, Foreign Ministry, National Security Council, Israel Police, Prison Service, Population and Immigration Authority, and the Military Advocate General's office. They were accompanied by captivity survivors Aviva and Keith Siegel, residents of Kibbutz Kfar Aza.
The delegation's appearance was conducted as part of implementing the State of Israel's commitments within the framework of the International Convention Against Torture, Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which convenes every four years and follows submission of Israel's sixth periodic report on implementing the Convention, submitted to the committee in 2020.
