Netanyahu Announces Defamation Lawsuit Against NYT Over Kristof Op-Ed on Sexual Violence in Palestinian Territories

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced plans to sue The New York Times for defamation over an op-ed by columnist Nicholas Kristof titled “The Silence That Meets the Rape of Palestinians.”

The Israel Foreign Ministry stated on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday that Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar have instructed legal teams to initiate a defamation lawsuit against the newspaper.

“Following the publication by Nicholas Kristof in The New York Times of one of the most hideous and distorted lies ever published against the State of Israel in the modern press, which also received the backing of the newspaper, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar have instructed the initiation of a defamation lawsuit against The New York Times.”

The announcement follows two prior defenses from The New York Times regarding Kristof’s op-ed, published on Monday.

A spokesperson for the newspaper stated on Wednesday:

“Nicholas Kristof’s deeply reported piece of opinion journalism starts with a proposition to readers: ‘Whatever our views of the Middle East conflict, we should be able to unite in condemning rape.’ He draws together on-the-record accounts and cites several analyses documenting the practice of sexual violence and abuse conducted by various parts of Israel’s security forces and settlers.”

The spokesperson added:

“The accounts of the 14 men and women he interviewed were corroborated with other witnesses, whenever possible, and with people the victims confided in – that includes family members and lawyers. Details were extensively fact-checked, with accounts further cross-referenced with news reporting, independent research from human-rights groups, surveys, and in one case, with U.N. testimony. Independent experts were consulted on the assertions in the piece throughout reporting and fact-checking.”