After Channel 12 News reported that the procession in which five suspects who spat at Christians were arrested was led by the brother of Knesset member Simcha Rothman – Rabbi Nathan Rothman – a member of the Knesset from the religious Zionist movement who also participated in the procession, he responded to the accusations and launched a sharp attack.
"They are not busy with news but with slander and lies"
Rothman began by clarifying, "Inbar Tweezer and the N12 website are not engaged in news but in slander and lies. My brother (the righteous one) led today at the head of a group of about a thousand people, and I was also among them. Torah words were spoken there, they danced, prayed, and sang. During this procession, the police arrested a child who was accused of spitting at someone yesterday."
"The title has already done the blackening of God's name and the division in the nation"
"For this procession, anyone who wants to come and go can do so. We passed by churches, monks, Muslims, Christians, and more. None of them were afraid or concerned. They stood within touching and filming distance, and they walked within the dense crowd. Whoever put a headline claiming that my brother or I are associated with someone who spat or didn't spit is not a journalist. She is a slanderer who spreads falsehoods and tarnishes the journalism profession.
"Only those who read the article can see that there is no accusation of spitting or any connection to spitting on my brother's part. But the headline has already desecrated God's name, sown slander, and even fueled division and polarization among the people."
Later, Rothman also criticized the Israel Police, saying, "As for the police, who use informants to arrest people who harm others due to religion, I say, 'Well done.' There were 18 disruptions of prayer events on Yom Kippur. I'm waiting for the arrests. All the informants are on the internet; don't look too hard."