Sara Netanyahu Ordered to Pay NIS 10,000 in Defamation Lawsuit
Translated & summarized from Ice by baba
Sara Netanyahu must pay 10,000 shekels after a Tel Aviv court dismissed her defamation lawsuit against a former employee, Silvi Genzia. The judge ruled Genzia's claims of mistreatment were true and upheld her defenses. This is the third ruling in the case, which has spanned over six years. The decision adds to a history of legal challenges involving Netanyahu and former residence staff.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Sara Netanyahu must pay 10,000 shekels after her defamation lawsuit against former employee Silvi Genzia was dismissed.
- A Tel Aviv court ruled that Genzia's claims of mistreatment by Sara Netanyahu were true.
- The judge upheld Genzia's defenses of truth and good faith in her publications.
- This is the third ruling in the case, with two prior judgments overturned.
- The court noted that Genzia is not the first employee to accuse Netanyahu of abusive behavior.
A Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court has dismissed a defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuit filed by Sara Netanyahu in 2020 against Silvi Genzia, a former employee of the Prime Minister's residence. Judge Ilan Ronan ruled in favor of Genzia, upholding her defenses of "truth spoke" and good faith, and ordered Netanyahu to pay 10,000 shekels in legal expenses. This marks the third ruling in the case, as two previous judgments were overturned due to the disappearance of Genzia's former legal representative.
Netanyahu had claimed in her lawsuit that Genzia was a "plant" funded by political actors to harm the Prime Minister before an election through false media publications. Judge Ronan completely rejected these claims, finding that the accumulated evidence supported the employee's version of events. The judge stated that Genzia's allegations depicted Netanyahu as having misused her position, treated Genzia rudely, and caused her distress. The court concluded that Netanyahu did indeed treat Genzia inappropriately, dismissively, and humiliatingly, and that Genzia's claims in the publications were true.
The court further noted that the overall picture presented of Netanyahu was disturbing, and that Genzia was not the first employee to accuse Netanyahu of abusive behavior towards residence staff. Genzia was represented pro bono by attorney Shaul Ida, who took over the case after the previous attorney, Ofir Samson, was ordered to pay 20,000 shekels for failing to file summations.
Attorney Ida commented that the "judicial torture" lasting over six years had ended, asserting that the case was a "silencing lawsuit" by a powerful individual against a household employee. He added that it was proven once again that Sara Netanyahu is a problematic person and that the repeated claims by many former employees over the years are accurate.
This ruling adds to a history of legal disputes involving Sara Netanyahu and former staff of the Prime Minister's residence. Previous labor court rulings awarded significant compensation to former employees who alleged abusive treatment. These civil cases occur concurrently with the ongoing criminal proceedings against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Sara Netanyahu's own past conviction in the "Residences Affair" in 2019, where she was found guilty of exploiting a mistake for personal gain regarding expenses for the official residence.
