The court has decided: The huge compensation Nathan Zahavi will receive
Four years after his suspension following his controversial remarks, Nathan Zahavi has won his lawsuit against radio station 103FM. The court ordered the station to pay him approximately 871,500 shekels in compensation.
Radio station 103FM will compensate presenter Nathan Zahavi in the amount of approximately 900,000 shekels for his suspension nearly four years ago following his harsh remarks on air. This ruling was issued on Tuesday by the Tel Aviv District Court.
Zahavi was suspended at the end of 2022 after stating during a live broadcast of his program 'Zahavi is Nervous':
'All these jerks, they quote me verses from the Bible - pray, put on tefillin, light Shabbat candles, separate challah, go dressed modestly. Go to hell with your modesty, and with the challahs, and with the candle lighting, and with the tefillin. I would be happy if some of you tied the tefillin to your throat and hanged yourselves, because they do nothing, and yet they are public representatives.'
The presenter refused to apologize at the time, and as a result, the station decided not to bring him back. Half a year later, Zahavi filed a lawsuit for breach of contract and defamation, demanding 2.6 million shekels.
'The defendant exploited, or even stirred up, a public outcry without allowing Zahavi to defend his statements,' the lawsuit stated. 'It used the event for a self-serving and incorrect interpretation of the words, while effectively silencing Zahavi without justification.' The claim further alleged that 103FM unilaterally stopped paying Zahavi in violation of their signed contract.
In the ruling, Judge Limor Bibi rejected the defamation claim but accepted the argument regarding breach of contract, as the station failed to pay Zahavi for the suspension period. Consequently, the judge ordered that Zahavi be compensated 796,500 shekels, plus 75,000 shekels in legal expenses, totaling 871,500 shekels.
