By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

Officials in the government ministries told Ynet and Yedioth Ahronoth that in recent months, Israeli officials decided to disassociate themselves from Elkayam-Levi.

An Israeli lawyer who was at the forefront of sexual assault claims attributed to Hamas on October 7 not only earned millions of dollars for the spread of  “untrue” stories but Israeli officials have now “disassociated themselves” from her, according to Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth.

Dr. Kochav Elkayam-Levi, head of the Deborah Institute, attorney and lecturer in the Department of International Relations at the Hebrew University, “was among the first to engage in the research and advocacy” of the alleged sexual crimes, the paper reported.

Officials in the government ministries told Yedioth Ahronoth that in recent months, “Israeli officials decided to disassociate themselves from Elkayam-Levi,” the report said.

‘This Story is False’ – New Video Challenges New York Times’ Sexual Violence Investigative Report 

“People disconnected from her because her research is inaccurate,” a government official told the paper. “After all, the whole story is that they want to accuse us of spreading fake news, and its methodology was neither good nor accurate.”

“For example, the story about the pregnant woman who had her stomach cut open – a story that was proven to be untrue, and she spread it in the international press. It’s no joke. Little by little, professionals began to distance themselves from her because she is unreliable,” the official said.

‘Civilian Commission’

The lawyer, who met with White House officials in December, also set up a “civilian commission” to investigate the October 7 events, through which she received millions of dollars in aid.

The White House’s statement following the meeting described her as “Chair of Israel’s Civil Commission on October 7 Crimes by Hamas Against Women and Children.”

Although the name suggests it was a government-established body, a source told the Israeli newspaper that it consisted only of Elkayam-Levy herself.

“People got confused, members of Congress turned to people who work with Israel and asked what it is, Israel built a commission? It’s a confusing name… Is there such a body? The answer is – no. It is the body. She is the civil commission,” the source said.

‘We Can’t Find Witnesses’: Israeli Police Contradicts NYT Report on Oct. 7 Sexual Assaults

“In a document aimed at gaining support for that civil commission, it is claimed that the total estimated cost of the commission’s activities in 2024 is 8 million dollars, of which 1.5 million is intended for management and administration,” the paper reported.

The same government official told the paper “Ram Emanuel, the US ambassador to Japan, donated money to her, she took donations from a lot of people, and started asking for money for lectures.”

According to The Grayzone, Elkayam-Levy on November 11, 2023 “presented images of female Kurdish fighters killed in combat as Jewish Israeli women who had been killed and raped” allegedly by Hamas fighters at the Nova Electronic Music Festival on October 7.

The report by Yedioth Ahronoth follows days after Elkayam-Levy was given the prestigious Israel Prize “for bringing attention to Hamas crimes against women,” the Times of Israel said.

New York Times Report

The latest exposure of disinformation about the events of October 7 follows the debunking this week of information in the New York Times’ infamous investigative report of December 28 entitled “‘Screams Without Words’: How Hamas Weaponized Sexual Violence on Oct. 7”.

The paper revealed that new video footage challenged the account of an unnamed Israeli military paramedic that the paper interviewed who claimed that two teenagers, killed in the October 7 resistance operation, were sexually assaulted.

However, footage taken by an Israeli soldier who was in Be’eri on October 7 casts doubt on the paramedic’s testimony.

The footage “shows the bodies of three female victims, fully clothed and with no apparent signs of sexual violence, at a home where many residents had believed the assaults occurred.”

The paper said that although “it is unclear” if the paramedic was referring to the same scene, residents of the kibbutz, in response to the new footage, reportedly said there was no other home in Be’eri where two teenage girls were killed.

“And they concluded from the video that the girls had not been sexually assaulted,” said The New York Times.

As with Elkayam-Levi’s reports, international media also reported similar accounts of alleged assault attributed to an anonymous military paramedic.

‘The Black Dress’ Investigation

The December 28 report was brought into question only seven days after its publication, with Israel’s media and police seeming to contradict the allegations as expounded upon in this Palestine Chronicle feature report.

The Palestine Chronicle and Friends of Palestine Network, conducted a joint investigation, based on media reports, in addition to historical and political analyses into this report.

‘The Black Dress’ – Palestinian Documentary Challenges NYT Report on Oct. 7 Mass Rape (WATCH)

‘’The Black Dress’: Unveiling the Truth about Rape, Sexual Assault on October 7, an 18-minute documentary, is the result of that investigation.

Along with questions raised about the accuracy of events on October 7, are concerns surrounding the ZAKA volunteer group which immediately began collecting bodies in the aftermath of the Resistance operation.

Even an investigation by the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, raised several questions about procedures during the retrieval of the bodies.

The Palestine Chronicle delved into the role and workings of ZAKA here.

(The Palestine Chronicle)