The New York Times doubled down on its defense of Nicholas Kristof’s controversial op-ed, titled “The Silence That Meets the Rape of Palestinians,” calling it a “deeply reported piece of opinion journalism.”
“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,’” a spokesperson for the Times wrote on Wednesday. “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 statement continued: “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.”
The storied outlet issued the additional statement regarding Kristof’s article one day after Israel’s Foreign Ministry slammed it as an “biased” piece that relied on “unverified sources tied to Hamas-linked networks.”
“This isn’t journalism. It’s Hamas propaganda, a distortion of the truth and the facts all serving an anti-Israel agenda,” the Foreign Ministry wrote on X Tuesday, adding, “A politically driven smear campaign by a biased paper designed to support efforts to blacklist Israel. This disgusting shameful piece must be removed immediately.”
As we previously reported, the Times first spoke out in defense of Kristof’s article — which alleges that Palestinians are regularly abused in Israeli prisons — on Tuesday, amid sharp criticism and calls for the column to be retracted. Specifically, a spokesperson for the Times made it clear there was “no truth” to retraction rumors and touted Kristof’s accolades and expertise.
“Nicholas Kristof is a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who has reported on sexual violence for decades, and is widely regarded as one of the world’s best on-the-ground reporters documenting and bearing witness to sexual abuse experienced by women and men in war and conflict zones,” the Times spokesperson wrote. “He traveled to the region to report firsthand on the stories of Palestinians who suffered abuse, and his article collects accounts in the victims’ own words, backed by independent studies.”
Kristof himself responded on Tuesday to the outcry, writing on X, “I appreciate the intense interest in my column. For skeptics, why not agree on Red Cross and lawyer visits for the 9,000 Palestinian ‘security’ prisoners? If you think these abuse allegations are false, such monitoring visits would be protective. So why not?”
