Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the witness stand today (Tuesday) in the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court, in his and his wife Sara's defamation lawsuit against Yedioth Ahronoth journalist Yigal Sarna, who they claim spread false slander against them - in a post he wrote on his Facebook page.
Serena claimed in a post that during a nighttime drive on Highway 1, Sarah ordered the prime minister to get out of the vehicle that was driving them - and left him on the side of the road until another vehicle arrived.
The Prime Minister claimed that these were false statements that constituted slander and libel, and demanded compensation from Sarna in the amount of 279,000 shekels for publishing the slander.
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Attorney Yossi Cohen, who represents the prime minister, said during the court hearing to Serena: "Your goal is that Netanyahu will not be prime minister.".
Serena responded to this: "How does criticism become an intention to harm?""
In his testimony in court, Sarna claimed that the prime minister's security guards separated the Netanyahu couple. "I don't know if she (Sara) pushed Netanyahu out or if he got out on his own.".
Sarna heard about the incident from "a friend who heard from a friend," but they did not appear in court - because they are not willing to testify. "I can't tell if a person is telling the truth or not. I checked with several friends, one of whom is a senior Shin Bet official," he said of his sources.
According to Serena, "The gist of the truth is that there was a fight, a convoy stopped, Mrs. Netanyahu calling for Mr. Netanyahu to get out of the car, and then a decision was made on how to continue the journey after the typical fight. Netanyahu got out of the car.".
The prime minister then took the stand. At the beginning of his testimony, he said: "What made the case so outrageous was that Serena told about an incident that never happened. Serena published crazy, twisted, and poisonous slander about me. Everything he said was a lie and a fabrication. I felt that it was so false and delusional, so far-fetched, and it added to the publications he published against me. But this is an event that stands on its own. The delusional story he told, which did not exist and was not created, led me to file the lawsuit.".
Netanyahu added: "This was not just a false slander about family relations, but a statement as if my wife controls the security apparatus of the State of Israel. Delusional. Absurd. There is a limit to everything. This also indicates the state. It creates a delusion about the security arrangements and governance in Israel. This is serious and false.".
After him, his wife Sara Netanyahu came forward to testify, demonstrating a combative spirit: "The slander is directed at the Prime Minister but also at me, absolutely. Everything that has been said about me is vicious lies and journalists continue because they recognize that I am the weak link, this is their way of bringing down the Prime Minister. We are being slaughtered by the media. New media and electronic media are no less prevalent today than the classic press, and therefore are no less powerful and influential.".
Sarah continued: "The publication was brought to my attention. It is a delusional and shocking publication, it has no connection to the truth, and I am seeking justice. I have already sued for defamation in the past.".
Upon leaving the court hearing, the Prime Minister said: "I respect freedom of expression, but freedom of expression is not freedom of speech. In Israeli democracy, the Prime Minister, his wife, and his family also have the right, like every citizen, to protect ourselves from defamation. Especially when it comes to a vicious lie that never existed and was never created.".
The Netanyahus tried to avoid coming to court and even postpone the hearing, but the judge in the Azaria Alkalai case refused their requests. He reasoned that if the couple filed a lawsuit and were the ones who took the case to court, then they must come and testify.
Sarna wrote at the time: “When at night (an event that happened) the Prime Minister’s heavy convoy is stopped, four black vehicles and more and more security guards and guards and vehicles, and out of it in the dark onto Highway 1, shouting, a man who is not young and who is the cause of everything, because one woman does not want him to stay in the car with her and makes a mockery of all the security and, in fact, the entire country, this is part of life. Make every possible noise that is not heard, everything is on fire with madness. Beat the drums.”.
