Israel to Sue NYT Over Sickening Report Accusing IDF of Canine Rape: 'Hideous and Distorted'
Israel announced on Thursday that it would sue The New York Times over an opinion piece published this week that accused Israeli prison guards of using dogs to sexually assault Palestinian detainees.
The lawsuit announcement came directly from Israel’s Foreign Ministry after days of outrage surrounding a column by New York Times writer Nicholas Kristof.
“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 ministry said Thursday morning.
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…
— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) May 14, 2026
Israeli officials had earlier likened the report to a “blood libel” aimed at demonizing the Jewish state during its ongoing war against terror groups.
Kristof’s May 11 opinion piece, titled “The Silence That Meets the Rape of Palestinians,” included allegations that Israeli prison guards used dogs to rape terrorists and terrorist sympathizers.
According to the report, Israeli guards allegedly restrained detainees before calling on dogs to penetrate them.
The unfounded claim was made by an anonymous source.
No independent evidence supported the allegations made in Kristof’s piece.
The NY Times just published a piece claiming that Israeli soldiers used dogs to rape Palestinians.
This is not a joke. I repeat. This is not a joke.
I wouldn’t use this trash as toilet paper.
The NYT has zero credibility left. Zero! pic.twitter.com/SbZVbPHbnr
— Hillel Fuld (@HilzFuld) May 11, 2026
Israel immediately condemned the report in no uncertain terms earlier this week.
“Today, the @nytimes chose to publish one of the worst blood libels ever to appear in the modern press,” the Israeli government said in an earlier statement.
“In an unfathomable inversion of reality, and through an endless stream of baseless lies, propagandist Nicholas Kristof turns the victim into the accused,” the statement continued.
Today, the @nytimes 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…— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) May 11, 2026
Israel also pointed to the sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7 attacks.
“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,” the government said.
Kristof and The New York Times have stood by the column.
— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimesPR) May 13, 2026
The paper had not publicly responded to Israel’s lawsuit announcement as of late Thursday morning.
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