Dr. Varda Saadeh, who was fired from a teachers’ college in Beersheva on the grounds that she justified the October 7 massacre in a series of social media posts, will receive more than 200,000 shekels in compensation, according to a report published this morning (Sunday) by Kan Reshet Bet.
Kaye Academic College of Education, which dismissed Saadeh, plans to appeal the ruling by Judge Avigail Borovitz of the regional labor court, who determined that the lecturer’s statements were protected under academic freedom of expression. The college argued that “such a lecturer cannot teach education students, certainly not reservists and relatives of murder victims."
On the morning of October 7, Saadeh posted a screenshot from footage showing armed Hamas operatives standing over a bleeding soldier pleading for his life, and wrote: “Even a cat scratches when approached. One day, the occupied will gather strength and rise up against everything that is happening." Later that same day, she wrote in another post: “Are you still asking where the rage comes from, where the fear comes from, where the hatred comes from?"
These were only two of many statements she allegedly made on social media. In another case, she wrote: “Another article: Gaza will not be flattened… Hamas and Islamic Jihad will not stop resisting."
The college also stated that during the hearing prior to her dismissal, Saadeh refused to define Hamas as a terror organization, while referring to the IDF as “the Israeli terror army."
Judge Avigail Borovitz justified her decision by arguing that the dismissal proceedings were flawed and that “especially in times like these, we must respect and contain a diversity of opinions and allow open and critical discourse."
On the other hand, the chairman of the college workers’ committee, Amos Hermon, argued that Saadeh repeatedly referred to IDF soldiers as murderers and the IDF as a terror army.
“She showed understanding for the terrorists’ despicable acts, especially on October 7," he said. “She has tens of thousands of followers. People read what she writes as a doctor of education at our college. She lectures Jewish and Bedouin students. We worked very hard to preserve coexistence."