A court in Israel has ordered a man to pay approximately NIS 180,000 to retired IDF Maj. Gen. Israel Ziv after finding that a social media post accusing Ziv of having advance knowledge of the October 7 massacre amounted to defamation.
The Kfar Saba Magistrate’s Court ruled against Ido Shifoni over a post in which he suggested that Ziv, along with Yair Golan and retired Maj. Gen. Noam Tibon, knew in advance about the Hamas attack and questioned how they were able to arrive in the Gaza border region early that morning.
Judge Ronen Peleg rejected arguments that the post could be interpreted differently, ruling that an ordinary reader would understand its meaning clearly. According to the judge, the underlying accusation was that Ziv and the others knew about the planned massacre beforehand but failed to alert the IDF.
The judge said the post effectively accused Ziv of betraying his country and suggested that he went to the combat zone not to fight, but to gain publicity.
Peleg also addressed the actions of Israeli security forces on October 7, noting that personnel from across the political spectrum fought alongside one another, with many losing their lives.
He lamented that their actions were later being tarnished by accusations such as those made in Shifoni’s post.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
