NYTimes 'Sorry' For Anti-Semitic Cartoon

The New York Times on Sunday apologized for a cartoon published in the Opinion pages of its international edition that drew widespread condemnation for being anti-Semitic.

The cartoon, which was published on Thursday in the print newspaper, portrayed a blind President Trump, wearing a skullcap, being led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, drawn as a dog on a leash with a Star of David collar.

“The image was offensive, and it was an error of judgment to publish it,” The New York Times said in an editors’ note that will be published in Monday’s international edition.

Eileen Murphy, a New York Times spokeswoman, said the paper was “deeply sorry” for publishing the cartoon.

“Such imagery is always dangerous, and at a time when anti-Semitism is on the rise worldwide, it’s all the more unacceptable,” Ms. Murphy said in a statement on behalf of the Opinion section. “We are committed to making sure nothing like this happens again.”

The cartoon drew hundreds of critical comments from people worldwide. The Jerusalem Post, The Times of Israel, CNN, Fox News and others published articles about the cartoon.

“Apology not accepted,” the American Jewish Committee said in response to The Times’s editors’ note. “What does this say about your processes or your decision makers? How are you fixing it?”

The cartoon was drawn by the Portuguese cartoonist António Moreira Antunes and originally published by Expresso, a newspaper in Lisbon. It was then picked up by CartoonArts International, a syndicate for cartoons from around the world.

Ms. Murphy declined to identify the editor, who she said was “working without adequate oversight” because of a “faulty process” that is now being reviewed.