Friends star David Schwimmer slams Hamas rape sceptics

Schwimmer, who is Jewish, wrote on Instagram Friday that he has been an advocate against sexual violence for nearly 30 years, Fox News reports.

Referencing the New York Times’ recent investigation of sexual assaults at the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, Schwimmer emphasised the importance of believing survivors.

“There are incredible organisations and individuals that I count as allies in this work,” he wrote.

“Who for years have stood up and fought for survivors of rape and sexual assault, demanding justice — many of whom are survivors themselves. And yet …”

“Why do so many REFUSE TO BELIEVE — despite all the evidence on camera and in testimony — the women, children and men brutally assaulted by terrorists on Oct. 7th?” he continued.

The Band of Brothers actor argued that many advocates for sexual assault survivors will “fight like hell for ALL victims of sexual violence — unless they’re Jews.”

“For many of them, denying it even happened is a convenient way of avoiding compassion and personal responsibility,” he wrote. “Perhaps this article will finally make them realise they got it wrong, and come to terms with their unconscious bias.

“Because — as they know better than most — their refusal to believe the survivors has RE-TRAUMATISED them, as well as their families, friends, and those of us who did believe them,” Schwimmer added.

The Instagram post was not the actor’s first time commenting on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Earlier in December, Schwimmer called university presidents who failed to condemn antisemitism during hearings “morally bankrupt.”

“Incapable of answering even the most direct ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions, watch them duck and smirk at the unbridled anti-Semitism [sic] and calls for genocide on their campuses,” Schwimmer said.

“Where is the outrage among students, faculty and alumni demanding their resignations, an official apology and enforcement of the codes of conduct?”

Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared in Fox News and has been reproduced with permission.