"You know how many old people now sit in a remote and stinking room, dreaming about food, and if they have a TV they watch all the food shows on that TV, and their drooling is dripping from their mouths, what will happen here? Where is it going? Where is this company going, where is the kindness? Where is humanity! They disappeared. All these drakes...
All these drakes quote verses from the Bible for me - pray, put on tefillin, light Shabbat candles, spread challah, go dressed modestly. Go to Kibinimat with modesty and challah and lighting the candles and tefillin. I would like to see some of you tie your tefillin to your throat and hang yourself because they don't do anything, but they are public representatives."
- On the same day, November 13, 2022, the defendant published a statement of condemnation, in the following language (attached as Appendix 8 to Zelkovnik's affidavit(:
"The things that Natan Zahavi said today are blatant and contemptible. Needless to say, they have no place in the station's broadcasts and we condemn them in every language. Freedom of expression also has red lines. The director general of the radio decided to suspend the broadcaster immediately and remove him from the microphone until an inquiry is held, after which decisions will be made regarding the future."
At the same time, the station's CEO, Zelkovnik, sent Zahavi an immediate notice of suspension from broadcasting, which came into effect on November 14, 2022.
- There is no dispute that following Zehavi's statement, the Second Authority contacted the defendant on November 15, 2022, regarding an "alleged violation" following the broadcast, and on November 16, 2022, the Authority's Public Inquiries Commissioner called for strict action against the broadcaster.
- On November 21, 2022, a clarification meeting was held between Zahavi and Zelkovnik's CEO, in which Zahavi was required to publicly apologize for his remarks as a condition for him to return to broadcasting, but he refused.
Subsequently, on November 23, 2022, the defendant sent Zahavi a notice, through Zelkovnik, in which the defendant briefly informed Zahavi of his continued suspension and the condition of his return to work by publishing an apology and guarantees. In more detail, the defendant began by arguing that Zahavi's conduct constituted a significant breach of the provisions of clause 2.6 of the agreement regulating the provision of services by Zahavi to the station, in which Zehavi explicitly undertook not to include in the broadcasts anything that constitutes a violation of the laws and binding procedures, including the instructions of the Second Authority. It was further detailed that during the previous investigation, it was clarified that the recurrence of such incidents should be prevented, but unfortunately, a very short time passed until an equally serious incident. It was noted that this indicates that Zahavi did not internalize at all the problems of violating broadcasts and the enormous damage they cause to the station.