HaGvura‒The Forum for Families of Fallen Heroes filed a complaint with the Israel Police against former magistrate’s court judge Sara Haviv on Wednesday after she was filmed tearing down a poster with pictures of fallen Israel Defense Forces soldiers and hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
The sign, which had been put up by the HaGvura forum, featured pictures of IDF Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul and Lt. Hadar Goldin, whose bodies have been held by Hamas since the 2014 war, as well as Staff Sgt. Amit Buntzel, who was killed fighting the terror group in Gaza on Dec. 6.
“This criminal act committed by the retired judge harms the holiest of holies, disrespected, and causes harm to all of the bereaved families in Israel,” said Itzik Bunzel, Amit’s father and a member of the forum.
“These are pictures of the holy ones in whose merit she breathes the air that she breathes,” Bunzel added. “In the coming days, we will file a complaint with the Israel Bar Association, asking to revoke her license.
“She should not be allowed to enter the courtrooms of the State of Israel and must be excluded from every firm and every organization because she crossed the clearest and most sacred red line in the State of Israel and harmed the dignity of the fallen,” the bereaved father stated.
The former judge refused to apologize, telling Israel’s Channel 12 News, “I did tear down the signs which, anyhow, were put up illegally. The HaGvura forum prefers dead hostages in exchange for future real estate, while I choose life. We will meet in court regarding the complaint.”
תיעוד שפירסמנו הערב במהדורה המוקדמת עם גדעון אוקו: השופטת בדימוס שרה חביב, לשעבר שופטת בבית משפט השלום בבאר שבע, תולשת שלטים עם תמונות של חללים וחטופים. ולמה? כי מדובר בשלטים שנתלו על ידי פורום גבורה, פורום של משפחות ששכלו את יקיריהן מאז השבעה באוקטובר ומטרתו לקדם את המשך התמרון… pic.twitter.com/dJYL6SRRb3
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Members of the HaGvura forum have campaigned in recent months for the continuation of Israel’s military operation against Hamas terrorists in Gaza, demanding that the death of their loved ones not be in vain.
The death toll among Israeli troops since the start of the Gaza ground incursion on Oct. 27 stands at 340 and at 706 on all fronts since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 cross-border massacre, according to IDF figures.
Some 101 hostages—alive and dead—are still being held captive after more than 300 days. Negotiations for their release have continued for months with the United States, Egypt and Qatar acting as mediators.
During a meeting on Aug. 20 with members of both the HaGvura Forum and the Tikva Forum for Families of Hostages, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed that Jerusalem would continue to press for a ceasefire deal that will free as many living hostages as possible while retaining security control over key areas of Gaza.