Audit: Sexual assault incidents within VA system underreported

A new report claims nearly two-thirds of the 67 rape allegations were not reported, as required by VA regulations.GAO report says many incidents not properly handledUnderstaffing, fuzzy expectations, poor oversight are blamedHouse committee chairman says report left him "aghast"House to hold hearing Monday

Washington (CNN) -- Sexual assault incidents within the Veterans Affairs system are not being reported up the chain, a new government audit released Tuesday found.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO), the investigative arm of Congress, reported that of nearly 300 sexual assault incidents reported to VA Police from January 2007 through July 2010, "many" were not reported to VA leadership officials and the VA Inspector General's Office.

The GAO report uses the term sexual assault incident to refer to "suspected, alleged, attempted, or confirmed cases of sexual assault."

The 284 cases of sexual assault included rape, inappropriate touching, forceful medical examinations, forced or inappropriate oral sex, and other types of sexual assault incidents.

"When I first read this report, I was aghast," said Rep. Jeff Miller, chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. "It reminded me of a 1950s prison system -- lawlessness, lack of security and reporting, and outright disregard for human dignity."

The House committee has scheduled a hearing on the matter for Monday.

The GAO says the VA agreed with most of its findings.

Nearly two-thirds of the 67 rape allegations in VA facilities were not reported to the VA Inspector General's Office, as required by VA regulation, according to the report.

Both men and women were victims of the assaults. The victims and attackers ranged from employees to patients to those without affiliation to the VA.

"Not all sexual assault incidents reported to VA Police are substantiated," the GAO report said, citing reasons such as an assault did not actually take place, the victim chose not to pursue the case or there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the case.

The investigators say underreporting is due to a lack of guidance on what constitutes a sexual assault, unclear expectations on what incidents should be reported and insufficient oversight by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), which oversees VA health facilities.

The VHA does not have a system to track and trend sexual assaults over time, according to the report, and therefore "cannot identify and make changes to serious problems that jeopardize the safety of veterans in their medical facilities."

The report also found that the VA has not taken the proper precautions to prevent sexual assaults in its medical facilities. Among the findings: Investigators report "poor monitoring of surveillance cameras, alarm system malfunctions, and the failure of alarms to alert both VA police and clinical staff when triggered." Officials at many of the locations the GAO visited said the VA Police were also understaffed.

"Patient and employee safety and security are paramount at the VA," said VA press secretary Josh Taylor. "We take all allegations seriously and investigate them thoroughly."

The VA says it's in process of reviewing the GAO's recommendations and taking steps to improve reporting of allegations and to provide more secure facilities.

"The bottom line is that we have a responsibility to protect those veterans in our care, as they have protected our nation, and we will continue to strengthen our facilities to ensure that our veterans receive high-quality medical care in safe, secure facilities," Taylor said.

The investigation was launched at the request of the House Veterans Affairs Committee due to changing demographics of patients treated by the VA.

The VA has developed initiatives to attract specific veteran populations to use its services, including women, young veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, and veterans facing legal issues or those already incarcerated, the report said.

The VA operates the largest integrated health care system in the country, with 153 hospitals and about 700 community-based clinics.

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Researchers find drop in anti-Semitic incidents

By Kurt Hostetler, AP

The Rev. Kenneth Dodson, pastor of New Covenant Church in Muncie, Ind., faces the side of his church, spray painted with anti-Semitic symbols and language, on April 15.

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Report: Anti-Semitic incidents down

Tourists visit the Yad Vashem holocaust memorial museum on the eve of Israel's Holocaust Memorial Day.An Israeli university issues the reportThe 2010 level is still the third-highest seenHolocaust Memorial Day begins in Israel at sundown

Jerusalem (CNN) -- Anti-Semitic incidents worldwide dropped sharply in 2010 from their peak in 2009, according to an annual report issued by an Israeli university on the eve of the nation's Holocaust Memorial Day.

However, the levels are significantly higher than they were a decade ago, when the upward trend began, according to the report from Tel Aviv University's Steven Roth Institute for the Study of Contemporary Anti-Semitism and Racism and the Kantor Center for the Study of European Jewry.

"The important question that must be asked today is: Have we learned the lessons of the Holocaust in the world? And to our great regret, the answer is no," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting. "A renewed anti-Semitism is spreading. Various forces are joining together and flooding the world with anti-Semitism. The hatred of Jews and the denial of their existence have turned into hatred of the Jewish state and denial of its existence."

According to the report, major incidents of physical violence, direct threats and major acts of vandalism fell by 46 percent, from 1,129 in 2009 to 614 in 2010. Although it represents a decrease, researchers pointed out the figure of 614 is the third-highest reported since worldwide statistics began to be monitored in the late 1980s.

The 2009 peak was attributed to the Israeli incursion into Gaza in early 2009, which the authors said sparked violence against Jews. "Since Jews and Israelis are often conflated into a single collective, events in the Middle East often provoke anti-Jewish groups and individuals into perpetrating hostile activities against local Jews."

In 2010, the largest number of violent incidents took place in the United Kingdom, France and Canada. The three nations saw 60% of all worldwide incidents, the report said.

The report also expressed concern over "countless anti-Semitic diatribes, speeches, press articles and especially the electronic posts in almost every possible form on the internet ... the central themes were the Jewish - Zionist world power and conspiracy, the demonization and the delegitimization of Israel mainly by comparing it to Nazi Germany and labeling it an apartheid state."

Holocaust Memorial Day begins at sundown on Sunday. It marks the anniversary of the Warsaw, Poland, ghetto uprising, which began April 19, 1943, when German troops and police attempted to deport its surviving inhabitants. Jews held out against the Germans for 27 days. About 300 Germans and 7,000 Jews were killed in the violence.

The memorial day is also observed in the United States. Congress established the Days of Remembrance as the nation's annual commemoration of the Holocaust, according to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The 2011 remembrance week is May 1-8.

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