Witness: "I'm anything but an anti-Semite"
The trial against Gil Ofarim continues at Leipzig District Court with various witness statements. Once again, the singer, who claims to have been insulted in an anti-Semitic way in a hotel, does not get any backing for his version. One witness is even downright outraged.
On Tuesday, the third day of the trial against Gil Ofarim came to an end at Leipzig District Court. The singer is accused of defamation and false accusations, among other things. In a video that went viral in October 2021, the 41-year-old claimed to have been insulted in an anti-Semitic manner by an employee in a Leipzig hotel. However, the public prosecutor's office found no evidence for his account of the events - and charged the singer.
Various witnesses had already had their say in court at the start of the trial last week. While Ofarim himself initially did not want to make a statement, employees and hotel guests described their perception of the incident around two years ago. Even the first witnesses essentially contradicted Ofarim's account. Only one of the interviewees wanted to remember a chain with a Star of David, which the musician claimed to have worn around his neck that evening in the hotel. However, no one heard the phrase "Pack your star", which Ofarim claimed to have been used by a hotel employee in an anti-Semitic manner.
According to reports from RTL and "Focus", the witness questioning on the third day of the trial painted a similar picture. According to RTL, there was still a great deal of media attention. Ofarim - wearing his Star of David necklace - entered the courtroom at around 9 am. He appeared calmer than last week. The hearing opened shortly afterwards - with a surprise.
Unknown witness comes forward
The public prosecutor's office explained that they had received a phone call the previous evening from a previously unknown witness. The witness stated that he had also been in the Leipzig hotel on the evening in question and had "not witnessed any insults" against Ofarim by hotel employees. He thus joined a number of other witnesses who have so far given similar testimony before the Leipzig district court.
"According to Focus, half a dozen hotel guests who had stood in line with Ofarim at the hotel reception in October 2021 were questioned on the third day of the trial. The unanimous tenor: none of the witnesses claimed to have heard the phrase "Pack your star". None of the interviewees had any recollection of the chain with the Star of David around Ofarim's neck either. Instead, several witnesses attested to the musician's quick-tempered behavior after delays and preferential treatment of some regular guests during check-in at the hotel.
One witness stated that he had heard expressions such as "Shit hotel!" or "Shit service!" from Ofarim's mouth. He added: "Mr. Ofarim was on 180! The hotel manager was very calm." According to Focus, the 58-year-old flight operations engineer also caused a stir by vehemently defending himself when Ofarim's lawyers tried to grill him. "If I had noticed something along the lines of an anti-Semitic incident, I would have intervened immediately. That's not possible," the man is quoted as saying. For him, there was "nothing worse than the Holocaust".
Defense targets credibility
Ofarim's defense in the trial is not least seeking to cast doubt on the credibility of witnesses who had previously commented on the events in October 2021 as part of an internal investigation by the hotel. She accuses the employee who allegedly insulted the musician in an anti-Semitic manner of contradictions in his statements. He had previously stated that he had googled Gil Ofarim before his arrival at the hotel, but later explained that he did not know who he was dealing with. She accused the flight operations engineer of asking during the internal hotel investigation whether Ofarim's statements were not a kind of "incitement to hatred". "In my opinion, that's the same as saying 'all Jews must be gassed'", he is also said to have stated according to the minutes. Asked about this in court by Ofarim's lawyers, the man reacted angrily according to Focus: "I'm anything but an anti-Semite."
The trial against Gil Ofarim will continue on Wednesday. It should be completed by December 7. In the event of a conviction, the penalty ranges from a fine to five years in prison. As long as the singer has not been finally convicted, he is presumed innocent.
During the trial, a previously unknown witness testified that they were in the Leipzig hotel on the night in question and did not witness any anti-Semitic remarks directed at Gil Ofarim. The defense, aiming to question the witnesses' credibility, pointed out contradictions in the hotel employee's statements and accused one witness of making a statement that could be interpreted as anti-Semitic.
Despite the singer's claims of being insulted in an anti-Semitic manner, the court proceedings have largely focused on the lack of evidence supporting his account and several witnesses testifying to Ofarim's quick-tempered behavior and expressions that were perceived as negative towards the hotel. In the midst of the trial, the entertainment industry has shown support for the musician, with the rock band 'Die Ärzte' performing a song during their concert in Leipzig dedicated to Gil Ofarim.
Source: www.ntv.de
