New York Times Goes Full Hitler
This is not courageous reporting. It is a modern blood libel, propaganda that inverts the horrors of October 7, recycles tainted sources, and forces Jews and Israelis once again to defend against the absurd while their enemies celebrate.
In one of the most disgraceful displays of modern journalism, the New York Times has published Nicholas Kristof's piece alleging systematic sexual violence by Israel against Palestinian detainees. The claims include lurid details of rape with carrots, sticks, and even "trained rape dogs."
Israel's Foreign Ministry rightly condemned it as "one of the worst blood libels ever to appear in the modern press."
Today, the New York Times chose to publish one of the worst blood libels ever to appear in the modern press. In an unfathomable inversion of reality, and through an endless stream of baseless lies, propagandist Nicholas Kristof turns the victim into the accused. Israel - whose citizens were the victims of the most horrific sexual crimes committed by Hamas on October 7, and whose hostages were later subjected to further sexual abuse - is portrayed as the guilty party. This publication is no coincidence. It is part of a false and well-orchestrated anti-Israel campaign aimed at placing Israel on the UN Secretary-General’s blacklist. Israel will fight these lies with the truth - and the truth will prevail.
The Sartrean dynamic is at its most revolting here, as the Middle East reported. As Jean-Paul Sartre observed, antisemites do not accuse Jews of stealing because they believe it; they do it to enjoy watching the Jew turn out his pockets in frantic proof of innocence. "Never believe that anti-Semites are completely unaware of the absurdity of their replies. They know that their remarks are frivolous, open to challenge. But they are amusing themselves, for it is their adversary who is obliged to use words responsibly, since he believes in words."
Jews defending against claims of training dogs to rape prisoners represents the foulest update yet of this tactic. No serious person believes these tales, yet outlets like the Times demand exhaustive rebuttals, draining time, dignity, and moral clarity while real barbarism, Hamas's documented sexual atrocities, fades from view.
Tainted Sources and Shifting Stories
Kristof's case collapses under basic scrutiny of its foundations. Central is Sami al-Sai, presented as a "freelance journalist." Al-Sai has a documented history of incitement, including a 2016 Israeli jail term for social media posts and another arrest in 2024 for the same. His Facebook reveals the mindset: he hailed a Tulkarm Battalion terrorist leader as "our martyred prince" and, one day after the October 7 massacres, triumphantly posted about terrorist "green flags" flying over Judea and Samaria. His abuse accounts have conveniently evolved, detailed in a B'Tselem testimony with "something hard" inserted anally multiple times, then escalated in Kristof's telling. A cheerleader for terrorists is no credible witness to Israeli misconduct.
Issa Amro, another pillar, shows similar inconsistencies. In a February 2024 Washington Post interview, he described threats during a short detention. By Kristof's 2026 piece, the narrative has expanded dramatically, as explained by Honese Reporting.
The piece also relies heavily on Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, bizarrely treated as a neutral authority. In reality, its leadership, including founder Ramy Abdu and former chair Mazen Kahel, has documented ties to Hamas-linked networks in Europe, appearing on Israeli lists of operatives. Euro-Med produces extreme, often unverified accusations against Israel while soft-pedaling or ignoring Palestinian terror. Citing it as evidence of Israeli "policy" is like trusting a propaganda arm for objective analysis.
The "Rape Dogs" Expert's Own Scandal
The most grotesque element, the trained rape dogs, leans on Shaiel Ben-Ephraim. This is the same individual who departed UCLA amid multiple sexual harassment allegations involving inappropriate conduct toward minors, including unsolicited explicit messages and invitations. He rebranded as a "geopolitical analyst." The hypocrisy staggers: an outlet pushing unproven sexual torture claims cites a figure credibly accused of sexual misconduct.
These sourcing failures are not accidental. They reflect a pattern of journalistic malpractice. Israel faces an enemy that weaponized rape on October 7 and continues abusing hostages. Detainees often belong to terror groups that glorify such violence. Claims of systematic Israeli policy lack independent medical corroboration, ignore Israel's internal probes, and invert a defensive war's realities. Isolated incidents, if proven, warrant accountability in any democracy. Fabricated systemic atrocities do not.
The New York Times has a troubling track record on Israel, with Kristof's columns frequently harsh on the Jewish state while muting its foes' extremism. Publishing this without ironclad verification fuels antisemitism, incites violence, and erodes trust. Real journalism requires skepticism of biased sources, context of Hamas's genocidal intent, and refusal to traffic in medieval-style libels.
Israel must (and does) uphold ethical standards amid existential threats. But the true disgust lies with an outlet that inverts victims and perpetrators, demands Jews endlessly disprove the preposterous, and calls it moral clarity. The Times owes a full retraction, sourcing transparency, and reckoning. Until then, this piece endures as sheer evil: lies wrapped in vitriol, a betrayal of truth when civilization most needs it defended.