Election Committee Orders Removal of Minister Ben-Gvir Photos from Ministry Posts
Translated & summarized from JDN by baba
The Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Noam Sohlberg, ordered the Ministry of National Security to remove additional photos of Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from its social media posts. The ruling came after an attorney argued the images were used for election propaganda. Sohlberg stated that while public officials can be featured, they cannot be the central focus of such posts. The ministry was also fined 2,500 shekels.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- The Central Elections Committee ordered the Ministry of National Security to remove more photos of Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
- Judge Noam Sohlberg ruled that the photos violated rules against using public assets for election propaganda.
- The decision followed a petition by attorney Yaron Meiri concerning ministry Facebook posts.
- The committee stated that elected officials cannot be made the central focus of government publications.
- The Ministry of National Security was ordered to pay 2,500 shekels in expenses.
The Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Judge Noam Sohlberg, ruled on Sunday that the Ministry of National Security must remove additional photographs from social media reports concerning the actions of Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir. The decision followed a petition filed by attorney and CPA Yaron Meiri, who argued that the inclusion of the minister's photos in three separate posts on the ministry's Facebook page constituted improper use of public assets for election propaganda. Following Meiri's appeal, the ministry had already removed some of the photos before the ruling.
In his decision, Sohlberg clarified that current legal precedent does not broadly prohibit the publication of an elected official's name or image in government ministry publications. However, it is strictly forbidden to make them the central focus of an event. In this specific case, the committee determined that even after the partial removal, one remaining photograph in the publications still highlighted the minister excessively and must be removed to prevent him from being the central figure. Additionally, the ministry was ordered to pay the petitioner 2,500 shekels in expenses.
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