Pro-Israel activist Lizzy Savetsky is doubling down on comments that she made alongside comedian Elon Gold on the red carpet of a film premiere at the Tribeca Festival, rejecting criticism that the pair made light of allegations that Israeli prison guards raped Palestinians.
“I stand by it with no regrets,” Savetsky told JNS of the joke she made during an interview for the film “The Wedding Entertainer (The Tale of Moishe Badhan),” which premiered at the festival on June 4.
In a clip she posted on Instagram, Gold said it was significant that an Israeli film was featured at one of the world’s most prominent festivals.
“I was only raped by two Israeli dogs,” he quipped, of his time in Israel and of an allegation in a Nicholas Kristof New York Times op-ed that Israel trains dogs to rape Palestinian prisoners. (Israel has said that it intends to sue the paper.)
“I thought they only raped Palestinians,” Savetsky said in the clip.
“No,” Gold said, laughing. “I got also a dog.”
The clip spread on social media, drawing criticism from users and media outlets that accused the pair of joking about rape and sexual violence.
“The outrage only exposes how the press and those poisoned by anti-Israel propaganda will twist anything to blame the Jews, even when it means justifying a story with zero evidence about something biologically impossible,” Savetsky told JNS.
“This is yet another case where they attack the reaction to the problem instead of the problem,” she said. “Classic deflection.”
Savetsky told JNS that the joke was intended to mock what she described as a New York Times “blood libel” accusing Israeli forces of using dogs to sexually assault Palestinians. The Jewish state has used the same term in its criticism.
“It was not a joke about rape,” she said. “It was a joke mocking the New York Times story, which spread a horrific blood libel that the IDF trained dogs to rape Palestinians.”
“There was no evidence to back up the claims, and it is biologically impossible for a dog to rape a human,” she told JNS. “The story was meant to do one thing—demonize Israel, and the New York Times ran this horrific propaganda, which the joke was pointing out.”
The Tribeca Festival issued a statement on Saturday distancing itself from what it said were “offensive and unacceptable remarks.” (JNS sought comment from Gold and the festival.)
The festival said that it did not credential Savetsky, who it said attended the premiere as a guest of the film’s team.
“The Tribeca Festival is aware of the concerns raised regarding a clip circulating on social media and unequivocally condemns the offensive and unacceptable remarks made by Elon Gold and Lizzy Savetsky,” the festival said.
“Sexual violence and human suffering should never be mocked or minimized,” it stated. “The comments do not reflect the Tribeca Festival’s values, and we regret the hurt and offense they have caused.”
Savetsky told JNS that outrage surrounding the joke is rooted in an attempt to “villainize Zionists.”
“Any other interpretation of what was said on the red carpet is ridiculous and a deflection from the actual issue here, which is irresponsible journalism meant to villainize Zionists,” she said. “Comedy and the arts have always been used to address real issues.”
“The issue here should not be dog rape, which is biologically impossible,” she told JNS. “It should be the blood libel spread by the New York Times.”
