Antisemitism watchdog thanks Washington Post for ‘smear’ piece
StopAntisemitism Executive Director Liora Rez says donations poured in after a Washington Post report said the group 'upended' the lives of rabidly anti-Israel figures.
A nonprofit dedicated to combating antisemitism on Wednesday rebuked a Washington Post story that claimed the group had "upended" the lives of anti-Israel figures.
Calling the story both "disturbing and ironic," StopAntisemitism executive director Liora Rez suggested that The Washington Post often voices support for those who expose rhetoric critical of marginalized groups but has now become sympathetic to Hamas apologists and those who push Jewish conspiracy theories.
"It appears that this particular reporter and his editors only have qualms when Jews defend themselves and take antisemite rhetoric and bring it to the forefront. So, our question is, why are you aligning yourself subconsciously with pro-terror, antisemitic views? That's what we want to know," Rez told Fox News Digital.
On Tuesday, Washington Post reporter Pranshu Verma published a piece that included the stories of several individuals who faced real-world consequences after criticizing Israel or expressing support for Hamas.
StopAntisemitism executive director Liora Rez responded to a Washington Post piece that suggested her group "upended" the lives of anti-Israel figures. (ERIC BARADAT/AFP/Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
It included the story of Dani Marzouca, who said in an Instagram livestream that "radical solidarity with Palestine means … not apologizing for Hamas."
Marzouca was fired shortly after StopAntisemitism posted the video to its X page.
"Hamas is a U.S.-designated terror organization, and we have this woman essentially spewing pro-terror propaganda, stating that if you want to be pro-Palestinian, you have to be pro-terrorism. It's insanity," Rez said.
The StopAntisemitism executive said her group applauds Marzouca's employer for taking swift action.
"If I personally was working with somebody who wanted my demise, the death of myself as a Jewish woman, I wouldn't want to be working with somebody like that," Rez added.
Marzouca told The Washington Post that StopAntisemitism's posts had led to a series of threats and disturbing messages.
"StopAntisemitism never endorses harassment. We never endorse violence. We never ask others to harass or, heaven forbid, propagate violence against an individual. What we do is verbatim take an individual's public responses [and post it on social media]," Rez said.
According to StopAntisemitism's X account, Marzouca is one of nearly 40 people who have faced employment repercussions as a result of their comments about Israel.
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Rez thanked The Washington Post for showing the effectiveness of StopAntisemitism and bringing new donors to the table. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo)
Celine Khalife, a 25-year-old Palestinian-American, was similarly fired from her job as a therapist after StopAntisemitism posted a video of her tearing down a poster of Israeli hostages. She also pushed a conspiracy theory that Israel had kidnapped its own civilians in an effort to blame Hamas.
Khalife told The Washington Post she misspoke in the video and tore down the poster because it contained the words "Hamas terrorism." She said the phrase was propaganda meant to downplay the plight of Palestinians.
StopAntisemitism frequently provides followers with the names, social media accounts and employers of those it says espoused antisemitic viewpoints.
Rez said her organization follows the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism, which the U.S. Department of State adopted. This definition states that calls for the erasure of Israel can be considered a form of antisemitism.
She added that calls for the abolition of Israel are often published by her group, especially when they are coupled with pro-Hamas rhetoric, denial of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks and various antisemitic tropes.
Demonstrations broke out across the country in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 terror attacks by Hamas. (JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)
The Washington Post piece quoted an expert who suggested the work of StopAntisemitism could be considered a form of doxxing. Rez noted that Verma, the Washington Post reporter who wrote the story, had previously claimed that tracking planes of high-profile figures like Elon Musk, wasn't doxxing because it relied on public data.
"StopAntisemitism never publishes anybody's personal address, personal phone numbers, date of birth, so on and so forth. Everything that we publish can probably be found by most individuals in a 0.25 second Google search," Rez told Fox News Digital.
Rez also said the watchdog group is "puzzled" by The Washington Posts' decision to center significant elements of the story around money, citing aspects of the article that posted her salary and focused on donors that inhabit Republican circles. Rez said she is proud to say StopAntisemitism is a bipartisan organization and donors range across the political spectrum.
She also suggested that The Washington Post reporter and his editors' decision to focus on money led them wittingly or unwittingly to push Jewish stereotypes.
"Jews today refuse to be intimidated by hatred. We have the right to defend ourselves like every other marginalized group, and we will not allow this particular reporter and his editors in The Washington Post to ever attempt to intimidate us," Rez said.
"Essentially, what they did with an attempted smear job turned out to be a promotional piece actually showcasing our effectiveness, leading to hundreds of donation requests. So, in the end, we thank them for this piece," she added.
A spokesperson for the Washington Post told Fox News Digital, "Our story presents different perspectives on StopAntisemitism’s activities, including from an Anti-Defamation League representative in support of their role in addressing religious discrimination."
Verma, Marzouca and Khalife did not return Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.