Benny Gantz
Benny GantzHadas Parush/Flash90

Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz filed a libel suit for NIS 500,000 against a woman who published a post on Facebook describing various acts she accused Gantz of committing against her 42 years ago, when she was 14 and Gantz was 17.

The lawsuit, filed by Adv. Boaz Ben-Zur, Carmel Ben Tzur and Guy Rave, states that the post is false, fabricated, and fictitious from beginning to end.

"The Plaintiff does not remember any acquaintance with the Defendant, and in any case the fantastic story she invented from her feverish mind never happened," the lawsuit states.

Ganz stated that he attributes excessive severity to inappropriate sexual behavior and believes that such claims should be taken seriously. Precisely because of this, he said that the false reports that were disseminated are very serious.

Ganz announced in his claim that he intends to contribute any amount that will be awarded as a result of the lawsuit for a public purpose, such as donating it to the Association for Rape Crisis Centers.

According to the lawsuit, the woman acted on behalf of a political party or with the help of political parties with an interest in slandering and humiliating Gantz. Her arguments were raised a few weeks before the elections for the Knesset, and just before the expected publication of the Attorney General's decision in the prime minister's investigation files.

It was further claimed that her Facebook posts indicate that she identifies herself with the opposing political camp, and that according to media reports, people close to a political figure were in contact with her prior to the false publication and helped her to spread her story later. Gantz added that a review of the published text also shows that this is "a text that is processed and cooked up by an interested party."