Singer Gil Ofarim admits he lied about antisemitic incident
Jewish-German singer Gil Ofarim told a Leipzig court he had fabricated a story claiming he was the victim of antisemitism. A falsely accused hotel manager accepted Ofarim's apology. Jewish groups say Gil Ofarim lied to them and that his false claims damaged the community Gil Ofarim, a Jewish-German singer on trial for defamation, admitted Tuesday during testimony at the Leipzig State Courthouse that he had indeed fabricated a story that made headlines across Germany in October 2021. In an October 5, 2021, social media video, Ofarim claimed a hotel employee had told him to remove his Star of David necklace while he checked into the Westin Leipzig. Ofarim was subsequently sued for defamation and spreading false accusations of antisemitic behavior as the accused hotel employee vehemently defended himself. "The accusations [against me] are true," Ofarim told the court. "I would like to apologize to you," he added, addressing the ...