Netanyahu unveils bills targeting those who ‘slander’ IDF soldiers

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Wednesday that he intends to advance two bills in light of the controversy surrounding the film NAZA, which reportedly paints the IDF in a negative light and won a prize at the Venice Film Festival this week. The film is based on anonymous testimonies by individuals presenting themselves as Israeli soldiers and intelligence officials. In a video that Netanyahu published, the Prime Minister ties the film to two previous incidents, which, according to him, caused damage to Israel and its troops. "We were all shocked by three incidents that caused tremendous damage to the State of Israel and tremendous damage to the soldiers of the IDF. The first was the remarks by Yair Golan, who said that IDF soldiers murder babies as a hobby. The second was the actions of the Military Advocate General, who put out a fake video that painted IDF soldiers as rapists." Related articles: Ayelet Shaked: “Netanyahu needs to go" Netanyahu rejects claims of Christian persecution 'I’m afraid a Palestinian government will be established here' Netanyahu warns Hezbollah: Next attack will bring ‘heavier blows’ "And the third was now the film NAZA, which presented IDF officers and soldiers as war criminals. The time has come to deal with it," Netanyahu stated, and declared: "I am going to submit two bills, now, government bills." Netanyahu detailed the measures which he intends to take: "The first is to revoke citizenship from those who slander IDF soldiers. The second his to hurt their wallets and to multiply the amount one may demand in a defamation suit by 20. To hurt both their wallets and citizenship, since they don't belong with us." Netanyahu called for widespread support for the bills: "And one more thing, I expect all Knesset factions that say they support the Zionist idea to support these two bills."