Israeli Officials Denounce NYT Report on Systemic Sexual Abuse of Palestinians

"The article in question, “The Silence That Meets the Rape of Palestinians,” by Nicholas Kristof, recounts the stories of 14 Palestinians who experienced sexual violence at the hands of Israeli soldiers and settlers. A majority of the interviews discuss sexual violence inflicted by soldiers and interrogators on Palestinians in Israeli detention, but others speak of attacks by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank - attacks that are “increasingly protect[ed]” by the Israeli military, according to Kristof. The interviews are reinforced by testimony from Israeli and international human rights organizations, and demonstrate that sexual violence is systemic, used on a daily basis against Palestinians, and effectively Israeli state policy."

"Israel's Foreign Ministry denounced The New York Times for publishing an op-ed on Israel's systemic sexual abuse of Palestinians. The New York Times “chose to publish one of the worst blood libels ever to appear in the modern press,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry posted on X late on Monday. It went on to claim that the Times has an “agenda” and that the op-ed is “part of a false and well-orchestrated anti-Israel campaign.”"

"Israel's ambassador to the U.S., Yechiel Leiter, also condemned the piece, saying that The New York Times and Kristof “count on you not pulling the curtain back on their lies.” He warned readers not to “buy into their blood libels.”"

"“I've spent some time reporting on widespread rape and other sexual violence of Palestinian male and female prisoners by Israeli authorities, and the article is now published,” Kristof said on X on Mo"

Fourteen Palestinians report sexual violence by Israeli soldiers, interrogators, and settlers. Most accounts describe abuse in Israeli detention, while others describe attacks by settlers in the occupied West Bank that are increasingly protected by the military. Testimony from Israeli and international human rights organizations is used to support the accounts. The reports portray sexual violence as systemic and used on a daily basis against Palestinians, functioning as effective state policy. Israel’s Foreign Ministry and ambassador to the U.S. denounce the publication, alleging falsehoods, an anti-Israel agenda, and “blood libels.” The reporting is framed as based on prior coverage of widespread rape and sexual violence of Palestinian prisoners by Israeli authorities.

Read at Truthout