Central Council of Jews condemns Gil Ofarim's behavior
The Central Council of Jews has condemned the behavior of musician Gil Ofarim in the alleged anti-Semitism scandal at a hotel in Leipzig. "For two years, Gil Ofarim accused employees of a Leipzig hotel of anti-Semitism. Now he has confessed that he lied. In doing so, Gil Ofarim has caused great harm to all those who are actually affected by anti-Semitism," the Central Council announced on Tuesday.
Previously, Ofarim had surprisingly admitted in a trial for defamation and false accusation at Leipzig District Court that the accusations against him were true. He apologized to the hotel manager, whom he had accused of anti-Semitism in a viral video. The musician has to pay a fine of 10,000 euros and the case was dropped.
Ofarim had lied not only to the public but also to the Jewish community, explained the Central Council. In the event of an accusation of anti-Semitism, it is right to stand on the side of the person concerned, to support them and not to question their experience of anti-Semitism in the first instance. Conversely, however, such an accusation should never be made without good reason. "And that's unfortunately what happened here."
Ofarim published a video in October 2021 in which he accused the manager of the Leipzig hotel of making anti-Semitic remarks. According to the Leipzig public prosecutor's office, however, this is not how the incident took place. Instead, it brought charges against Ofarim.
Despite Gil Ofarim's involvement in a music career, his actions have triggered a controversial crime scenario. The false accusations of anti-Semitism against hotel employees damaged the trust between people and the importance of open dialogue about such processes.
Source: www.dpa.com
