Viral Video Shows MK Yelling 'Mentally Ill' at Activist Seeking Missing Girl
Translated & summarized from Davar by baba
A video from Prime Minister Netanyahu's visit to Beersheba shows MK Almog Cohen yelling "You are mentally ill" at activist Yaros Asres, who was wearing a shirt advocating for the return of missing girl Haimanot Kassaw. Asres has been actively campaigning for Kassaw, who disappeared in February 2024. The head of the Shin Bet recently met with the Kassaw family, while the family's request for a protest tent near the Prime Minister's residence was denied.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- MK Almog Cohen yelled "You are mentally ill" at activist Yaros Asres during PM Netanyahu's visit to Beersheba.
- Asres was wearing a shirt advocating for the return of Haimanot Kassaw, a nine-year-old girl who disappeared in February 2024.
- Cohen claims he was not addressing Asres but another woman who made a rude gesture.
- Asres has been actively involved in the campaign for Kassaw, assisting her mother with translation.
- The head of the Shin Bet, David Zini, met with the Kassaw family after a long wait.
- The Kassaw family's request for a protest tent near the Prime Minister's residence was denied.
A video from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's visit to a mall in Beersheba went viral not for its intended purpose, but due to a confrontation between an activist and a Member of Knesset. Yaros Asres, 18, attended the event wearing a shirt in support of Haimanot Kassaw, a girl who disappeared in February 2024 at the age of nine. Asres shouted "Where is Haimanot?" during Netanyahu's visit. The video shows MK Almog Cohen of the Likud party yelling "You are mentally ill" in her direction. Cohen later claimed he was addressing a different woman who made a rude gesture, and that if he intended to address Asres, he would have looked directly at her. Asres stated she only saw Cohen's reaction later and expressed disappointment that a minister would yell such an insult at anyone, regardless of intent.
Asres has been actively involved in the campaign to find Kassaw, previously visiting the family's protest tent in Jerusalem and assisting Kassaw's mother, who does not speak Hebrew, with translation. Asres views Kassaw as a younger sister and is committed to continuing the fight for answers about her fate. She expressed frustration with other attendees at the mall who told her to be quiet, emphasizing the lack of public attention to Kassaw's disappearance.
In related developments, after a long period of requests, the head of the Shin Bet, David Zini, met with the Kassaw family. The family's request to set up a protest tent outside the Prime Minister's residence in Jerusalem was denied, and Prime Minister Netanyahu himself had not met with them for over nine months.