Ex-Aman chief ordered to pay NIS 190,000 in bitter village defamation case

Judge Sigalit Gatz-Ophir described a long-running, ugly dispute between two village residents that had already gone through earlier proceedings and even an apology by Cohen, but only escalated further into mutual lawsuits. Sagi, 82, is a native of Kfar Bialik and the son of the community’s founders, and had also served in the past as a committee member and chairman in the moshav, which is part of the Zevulun Regional Council near Kiryat Bialik.

At the center of Sagi’s claim was a WhatsApp message Cohen sent to all village residents, saying Sagi refused to pay for clearing a sewage blockage and was trying to pass the cost to the public, and that he had uprooted trees from public land. It later emerged that the plant in question was a type of pepper tree and had in fact been removed by a municipal worker. The court found that the publication amounted to defamation, but the compensation was limited.

The counterclaim, which the judge accepted in full, concerned four separate publications in which Sagi accused Cohen of criminal conduct, trespassing on public land, conflicts of interest, and improper conduct. The court found Sagi repeatedly raised claims that had already been decided in earlier proceedings, while omitting that they had been rejected. Judge Gatz-Ophir wrote that Sagi was “someone who knows the truth for certain, but chooses to ignore it,” adding that “the truth is not his guiding light,” and that he was deliberately repeating defamatory claims against Cohen. She also wrote, “I found no reason to trust Mr. Sagi’s testimony,” and described his path as “a path of quarrel.”

By contrast, the judge accepted Cohen’s version in full, despite noting that part of his motive was his strained relationship with Sagi. She said the counterclaim was not an attempt to silence Sagi, but a response to continued harm to Cohen’s reputation. The court also noted that Sagi’s reputation in Kfar Bialik is not good, which helped reduce his damages, though the judge stressed that even someone with a bad name is entitled to protection from defamation. Sagi was also not able to prove his claim that he had cleared his name over allegations raised by former Labor Party leader Shelly Yachimovich. In total, Cohen must pay Sagi NIS 5,000, while Sagi must pay Cohen NIS 190,000 plus NIS 35,000 in legal fees and additional costs. Sagi is expected to appeal, and his attorney, Ron Aviv, said the ruling was extreme, claimed the court had shown hostility, and argued that an appeals court should correct what he called a grave injustice.