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Israeli Court Rules Against Defamation Lawsuit by Abbas's Son
(Israel Hayom) Elinor Shirkani Kofman - The Jerusalem District Court on Sunday rejected a defamation lawsuit by Tareq Abbas, son of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, against Middle East expert Dr. Reuven Berko. In an Arabic language television interview Berko asserted that Tareq Abbas owned multiple companies and claimed that Abbas's family members "arrived here with nothing and became millionaires." Abbas alleged that Birko's statements portrayed him as collaborating with Israel. However, Judge Ram Winograd stated that Israeli courts do not consider statements about cooperation with Israel as defamatory. Moreover, the interview was not aired on an Israeli channel but that excerpts were distributed through a Gaza news site. Berko maintained that in the complete interview, he had actually commended the Abbas family, and his statements were presented out of context.