Amid public outrage and a rare rebuke by the Shin Ben security agency, former Israeli Air Force pilot Ze'ev Raz was interrogated by the Israel Police on Sunday over alleged incitement after posting online comments that suggested it was legitimate to kill Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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Raz had written that if Netanyahu's proposed judicial reforms lead him to "assume dictatorial powers" it was incumbent upon Israelis to assassinate him, drawing condemnation across the board and forcing. Raz eventually walked back those statements
The issue of threats against public officials has become a source of much concern in the wake of the 1995 assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, whose detractors used incendiary language against him that in some cases amounted to actual threats. These included rabbis who issued halachic rulings that essentially made it permissible, under their interpretation, to kill him.
Raz, a former colonel who also took part in the 1981 bombing of Iran's nuclear reactor, said that his post was merely a quote of another individual and that unfortunately, some attributed it to him. He stressed that he was against it and therefore took it down.
Netanyahu also lashed out against the post "red lines are being crossed daily, and I expect law enforcement agencies to take action on the matter." He warned that vigorous debate is important but such comments are "a threat to democracy." The Shin Bet security agency, which is tasked with protecting public officials, warned on Saturday that it would have "zero tolerance" for such threatening language.
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