State attorney seeks probe into pop singer Eyal Golan for calling to ‘erase Gaza’
Musician urged to ‘not leave a single person’ in Strip, days after the October 7 terror onslaught; Golan responds to reports: ‘Am Yisrael Chai’
State Attorney Amit Aisman is looking to open a criminal investigation into pop singer Eyal Golan on suspicion of incitement to violence, after the musician called for the death of all Gazans shortly following the October 7 Hamas attack, multiple Hebrew media outlets reported on Sunday.
Golan called a few days after the attack to “erase Gaza” and “not leave a single person there,” according to the Kan public broadcaster, which first broke the story.
It was not immediately clear when Golan made the specific comments being looked into, but he said almost the exact same words during an October 15 interview with Channel 14, as he was performing for soldiers in the field.
On October 7, 2023, some 3,000 Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, starting the ongoing war.
Asked for comment about the potential charges, the singer responded with a terse statement saying “The nation of Israel lives” (Am Yisrael Chai) — a traditional rallying cry for Jewish survival that is also the title of Golan’s wartime anthem released after October 7.
The singer has previously run into legal trouble for tax evasion and fraud – which he was found guilty in 2014 — and has been dogged by allegations of sex offenses against minors, for which his father was convicted and sent to prison.
The decision of whether to open the investigation falls with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who will also decide whether to follow a similar recommendation by Aisman to investigate National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir on incitement charges over statements he made at the beginning of the war.
None of the officials involved believe an investigation against the minister would result in an indictment, much less a conviction, especially in light of Ben Gvir’s parliamentary immunity, the Kan public broadcaster reported last month.
Rather, the investigation would be intended to show the International Court of Justice, where South Africa has alleged Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, that Israel is complying with its orders to investigate and punish anyone who violates the clause of the Genocide Convention prohibiting incitement to genocide.
Gaza ❤️ Aisman
Israel ❤️ Eyal Golan— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) August 18, 2024
Golan, who is popular among right-wing Israelis, received backing from Ben Gvir on Sunday night. The far-right minister tweeted in his terse style, using heart emojis, indicating that Aisman was acting on behalf of Gazans while Israelis agreed with Golan.
