Court Orders Right-Wing Activist to Pay Over NIS 50,000 in Defamation Case

A Tel Aviv court has ordered right-wing activist Esther Yohay to pay NIS 40,953 in damages and NIS 10,000 in legal costs to activist Shkema Bressler in a defamation lawsuit. The court also mandated that Yohay remove the offending publications within 14 days.

The lawsuit stemmed from social media and WhatsApp posts Yohay made after the October 7th Hamas attack. These posts accused Bressler of prior knowledge of the attack, complicity, and even aiding Hamas. One publication included a doctored image of Bressler in prisoner attire with the caption "Guilty: Treason against the homeland."

Bressler had sought NIS 400,000, arguing the posts falsely attributed serious criminal acts to her, going beyond mere political criticism. Yohay contended her posts constituted legitimate criticism and opinion, based on Bressler's own statements during the protest period.

Judge Guy Forer ruled that while some statements, like referring to Bressler's "organization" as a metaphor or expressing opinions on public disputes, were not defamatory, others were. Specifically, accusations that Bressler knew about, agreed to, or assisted Hamas in the October 7th attack were deemed factual claims constituting defamation, as Yohay failed to prove their truth.

The court found Yohay's claims of prior knowledge and assistance unsubstantiated, noting her inability to coherently explain alleged agreements with Hamas. While the judge believed Yohay subjectively believed her claims, this belief did not replace the need for factual proof. The court consolidated the defamatory publications into a single instance for damage calculation due to their similarity and proximity in time, and because widespread dissemination and intent to harm were not proven, preventing double damages.