Rep. Gottheimer Blasts New York Times Report on Alleged Sexual Violence Against Palestinian Prisoners

Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., criticized The New York Times over its report alleging systemic sexual violence against Palestinian prisoners by Israeli forces and settlers, including claims of dogs used for rape.

The report by columnist Nicholas Kristof, which went viral on Monday, detailed accounts from 14 men and women who said they were sexually assaulted by Israeli settlers or security forces. The allegations included abuse of genitalia and penetration by a dog.

"WTF @nytimes!" Gottheimer wrote on X. "Nick Kristof amplifies proven Hamas-affiliated sources and their propaganda, while the NYT continues to gloss over the systematic sexual violence, rape, and mutilation Hamas committed on October 7, now fully documented in the new Civil Commission report."

"We should expect better from the paper of record, particularly with allegations as serious as these. It’s almost as if the NYT is on Hamas’ payroll," the Democratic lawmaker added.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, quoted in the story as saying, "Do I believe it happens? Definitely," accused the Times of misrepresenting his comments.

"Mr. Kristof's article includes claims of extraordinary gravity: that Israeli authorities have directed the rape of children, that dogs have been used as instruments of sexual assault, that systematic sexual torture is state policy. I did not validate these claims," Olmert said in a statement obtained by The Free Press.

"I have no knowledge supporting these claims, as I said to Mr. Kristof. Therefore, the positioning of my quote after pages of such allegations misrepresents my views," he added.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry condemned the report as "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," the ministry wrote on X.

"This publication is no coincidence. It is part of a false and well-orchestrated anti-Israel campaign aimed at placing Israel on the U.N. Secretary-General’s blacklist," it added. "Israel will fight these lies with the truth — and the truth will prevail."

The New York Times did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. A Times spokesperson, Charlie Stadtlander, defended Kristof.

"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," Stadtlander wrote.

"He traveled to the region to report firsthand on the stories of the Palestinians who suffered abuse, and his article collects accounts in the victims’ own words, backed by independent studies," the statement added.

Stadtlander also addressed Olmert's criticism, telling Fox News Digital, "Mr. Olmert was one of many people that Nick Kristof spoke to for his column, offering the former Prime Minister the context and overview of what he was writing. Olmert's quote was given on the record, tape-recorded and is presented accurately and in appropriate context to readers."