Sydney restaurant owner sued over alleged 'vilification' after undercover sting with News Corp
A pro-Israel activist has taken a prominent Sydney restaurant to court, alleging he was shunned and vilified by staff after an undercover operation with reporters from the Daily Telegraph.
Ofir Birenbaum visited Cairo Takeaway in February wearing pro-Israel symbols alongside journalists, sparking claims that he attempted to manufacture an "antisemitic incident". However, Birenbaum disputes this assertion, claiming his intention was not to provoke a reaction.
The restaurant's owner and staff member are facing defamation charges over social media posts that implied Birenbaum had tried to incite an antisemitic incident. The claim alleges these posts led to the public shunning of Birenbaum and even sparked a workplace investigation.
In response, Cairo Takeaway published two revised social media statements retracting claims made earlier about Birenbaum's behavior at the restaurant. They acknowledged that their initial account was inaccurate and expressed regret for any distress caused by their actions.
A statement from the restaurant described how Birenbaum had entered wearing prominent pro-Israel symbols, while they were "unapologetically and transparently pro-Palestinian". It also noted the current escalation of conflict between Israel and Palestine, which led to a heightened sense of unease among staff.
A pro-Israel activist has taken a prominent Sydney restaurant to court, alleging he was shunned and vilified by staff after an undercover operation with reporters from the Daily Telegraph.
Ofir Birenbaum visited Cairo Takeaway in February wearing pro-Israel symbols alongside journalists, sparking claims that he attempted to manufacture an "antisemitic incident". However, Birenbaum disputes this assertion, claiming his intention was not to provoke a reaction.
The restaurant's owner and staff member are facing defamation charges over social media posts that implied Birenbaum had tried to incite an antisemitic incident. The claim alleges these posts led to the public shunning of Birenbaum and even sparked a workplace investigation.
In response, Cairo Takeaway published two revised social media statements retracting claims made earlier about Birenbaum's behavior at the restaurant. They acknowledged that their initial account was inaccurate and expressed regret for any distress caused by their actions.
A statement from the restaurant described how Birenbaum had entered wearing prominent pro-Israel symbols, while they were "unapologetically and transparently pro-Palestinian". It also noted the current escalation of conflict between Israel and Palestine, which led to a heightened sense of unease among staff.
their owners need to take responsibility for their staff's actions! like yeah sure you're trying to be pro-palestinian but thats no excuse to treat someone who was just wearing pro-israel symbols with such hostility 
i mean come on, can't we all just get along? 
and now they're suing the guy over it? that's just messed up 
I gotta wonder, what's the big deal here? If someone walks into your restaurant rockin' some pro-Israel gear, shouldn't that be okay? 
It seems like Birenbaum just wants to have an open conversation about his views, but Cairo Takeaway jumped on it and turned it into a mess. 
The staff was already stressed out due to the conflict in Israel and Palestine, but instead of talking things through, they ended up shunning him? 
It's like they created an "incident" where none existed just to deflect attention from their own issues. 
It's not like they had to be antisemitic or anything... just having differing views doesn't make you bad people 
I mean, wasn't it a good idea for them to just wait and see what happened before they started spreading stuff online? 
It's easy to say now that they made a mistake, but what about the person who was actually trying to have a conversation 
. But at least they're owning up to their mistakes and apologizing 
.
. I mean, it's not like he literally tried to cause harm or anything.
. They're saying Birenbaum walked into the restaurant wearing pro-Israel symbols and that immediately sparked a reaction from the staff? That sounds pretty convenient to me 
. And now they're retracting their claims and saying it was all a big misunderstanding, but by then, they've already got themselves in some hot water 
.
. But at the same time, I think we need to make sure that we're not using this as a way to silence people who have legitimate opinions or concerns 
.
. Will Cairo Takeaway get off scot-free, or will they face some real consequences for their actions? Only time will tell 
!
. Cairo Takeaway's owners and staff were just trying to express their views in a public forum, which is totally fine... well, except maybe for the part where they kinda misinterpreted Ofir Birenbaum's intentions 
. I mean, what's next? Using reporters to test people's reactions to certain topics just because it's "shocking" or something? It feels like a PR stunt more than a legitimate investigation 
.