Israel Threatens Legal Action Against New York Times Over Report on Abuse of Palestinian Detainees

TEL AVIV: Israel has announced plans to pursue legal action against The New York Times following the publication of an article alleging rape and sexual abuse of Palestinian detainees in Israeli custody.

In a statement shared on social media Thursday, Israel’s foreign ministry described the opinion piece by journalist Nicholas Kristof as “one of the most hideous and distorted lies ever published against the State of Israel in the modern press”.

The ministry said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar had instructed officials to initiate a defamation lawsuit against the newspaper.

Speaking to Reuters, Netanyahu said Israel would challenge the allegations “in the court of public opinion and in the court of law”.

The move prompted strong criticism from media and legal observers, while the New York Times firmly defended its reporting and rejected the accusations.

A spokesperson for the newspaper, Danielle Rhoades Ha, said any legal claim would be “without merit”, arguing that the threat represented an attempt to undermine independent journalism.

“This threat is part of a well-worn political playbook aimed at silencing reporting that does not fit a particular narrative,” she said.

The newspaper also defended Kristof’s credibility, noting that he has spent decades reporting on sexual violence and conflict zones around the world.

According to the Times, interviews conducted with 14 Palestinian men and women were corroborated through additional witnesses, family members, lawyers, human rights groups and independent experts during the fact-checking process.

Kristof’s article, published in the newspaper’s opinion section earlier this week, detailed allegations of sexual abuse involving Palestinian detainees, including claims of rape and mistreatment by prison guards, soldiers, settlers and interrogators.

The report stated that testimonies were gathered through contacts with lawyers, humanitarian organisations, aid workers and Palestinian civilians.

Human rights organisations, including B’Tselem and Save the Children, have previously documented allegations of abuse against Palestinians in Israeli detention facilities.

Legal experts also questioned the viability of any lawsuit. Media law specialists cited by international outlets argued that US courts are unlikely to entertain defamation claims brought by a foreign government against a news organisation due to constitutional protections for press freedom.

International media law expert Mark Stephens described the proposed lawsuit as “ludicrous”, saying courts are generally cautious when political disputes are framed as defamation cases.

This is not the first time Israeli officials have threatened legal action against international media outlets. Last year, Netanyahu criticised the Times over its reporting on humanitarian conditions in Gaza and suggested the paper should face legal consequences, though no lawsuit was ultimately filed.