Trigger Warning: This article contains graphic descriptions of sexual violence and abuse.

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof is facing fierce backlash, including threats of lawsuits, after publishing a harrowing investigation into the sexual abuse and rape of Palestinian detainees by Israeli soldiers, settlers, and prison guards.

Kristof’s report, published this week, draws on interviews with survivors in the West Bank — men, women, and children, who described being beaten, stripped, groped, and violated with objects while in Israeli custody. The column notes that a United Nations report last year found sexual violence had become one of Israel’s “standard operating procedures,” and that human rights lawyers say the abuse is rampant and normalized.

The backlash from Israel defenders was swift, with some figures vowing to pursue legal action against Kristof and the Times. In a post on X, Kristof wrote: “Whatever our position on the Middle East, we should be able to agree on being anti-rape. Sexual assaults were horrific when Israeli women were targeted on October 7th, and they’re equally horrific when Israeli authorities used them against Palestinians day after day after day.”