Benjamin Netanyahu
Role at the time: Prime Minister of Israel, in a post on his X account
Statement summary
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was demanding that the IDF chief of staff, the Shin Bet director and the attorney general open a comprehensive investigation against the people who took part in NAZA and prosecute them for information-security offenses, criminal defamation and harm to Israel's diplomatic and security interests.
“I demand that the Chief of Staff, the head of the Shin Bet and the Attorney General open a comprehensive investigation against the participants in the film "NAZA" and put them on trial for serious information-security offenses, criminal defamation and harm to Israel's diplomatic and security interests. (Translated from Hebrew. Original: אני דורש מהרמטכ״ל, מראש השב״כ ומהיועמ״שית לפתוח בחקירה מקיפה כנגד המשתתפים בסרט ״נז״א״ ולהעמיד אותם לדין בגין עבירות ביטחון מידע חמורות, הוצאת דיבה פלילית ופגיעה באינטרסים מדיניים וביטחוניים של ישראל.)”
Post in Hebrew on Netanyahu's own X account, published shortly after his office released his letter to the IDF chief of staff, the Shin Bet director and the attorney general.
Why we used this label
The case asks whether Israel should investigate and prosecute the people who made NAZA or appeared in it, as Netanyahu demanded on October 11. Netanyahu demands that the three officials investigate the film's participants and put them on trial. That supports both investigation and prosecution, so we labeled it Defended or excused. The closest competing label is Challenged characterization, since he also calls the film false; it loses because he goes beyond disputing the film's account and demands criminal proceedings.