Matan Peled, Im Tirtzu chairman
Matan Peled, Im Tirtzu chairmanIm Tirtzu

Tel Hai College, in the upper Galilee, has decided to reprimand a tutor, Gabbi Weinrot, who made inflammatory statements against the IDF during Operation Protective Edge.

The accusations against Weinrot were based on quotes from posts that appeared on his Facebook page, such as “You are murdering children in my name, you psychopathic Nazi sons of bitches” and “There is no better time to speak out against the military than when the military operation is a massacre. There is no one better suited to speak out than a soldier refusing an order. There is no more worthy cause than resistance against the regime that controls you. There is no time better for opposition than now.”

Following these and other statements, students demanded that the college administration look into the matter. This week, Weinrot was summoned to hearing but received only a reprimand.

Grassroots Zionist movement Im Tirtzu appealed the decision to the college president, Prof. Yonah Chen, and requested that Weinrot be fired.

"There is no doubt that these are radical, false, and inflammatory statements,” wrote Im Tirtzu. “Mr. Weinrot is a tutor of students at the distinguished Tel Hai College and acts as a representative of the college to them. Of course, a significant percent of the students are reserve soldiers... Weinrot’s lies and slander are a badge of shame for Tel Hai College and fundamentally undermine its prestige.”

“From now on, any student who studies under inciting lecturer Weinrot will prefer to hide the fact that he or a member of his family serves in the reserves,” added Im Tirtzu chairman Matan Peleg.

For his part, Weinrot has denied that the way in which he expressed himself constitutes grounds for terminating his employment. He hinted that the college was being pushed into action against him by Im Tirtzu and called for the establishment of an “anti-fascist” political cell on the Tel Hai campus for people with “non-Zionist” and “cosmopolitan” world views.