Petah Tikva court indicts 49-year-old over 21 X posts seeking Netanyahu's death

Raz Weinberger, 49, was charged on Sunday with inciting terrorism and violence based on a series of social media posts. The State Attorney's Office filed the indictment in Petah Tikva Magistrate's Court and requested that the Ein Hahoresh resident remain in custody until the case concludes. Prosecutors argue the repeated calls for bloodshed created a danger through both the suspect's potential actions and his influence on others.

The indictment details 21 posts published between September 10 and October 19. These posts appeared ahead of the election for the 26th Knesset. Weinberger faces 10 counts of incitement to terrorism and 18 counts of incitement to violence. Some of the posts serve as evidence for both sets of charges simultaneously.

The documents quote specific language used by Weinberger. In a reply to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he wrote that the leader was the greatest traitor in the country's history and deserved death. In another post, he called for Netanyahu, his wife, and her two sons to be burned alive. He also targeted coalition politicians, calling for the beheading of Likud MK Almog Cohen. In a separate post directed at Likud MK Tally Gotliv, he called for sexual violence against her and for her to be burned.

Weinberger was arrested on October 23. During five police interviews, he acknowledged writing all the posts using his cellphone. Prosecutors cited records recovered from the phone that link him to the account. Although the account had only about 40 followers, the posts were publicly accessible. View counts for the replies ranged from 23 to 283.

Prosecutors noted that Weinberger has no prior criminal record. They argued that the number, repetition, and severity of the posts demonstrated a sustained pattern rather than isolated remarks. They also stated that he was trained to use a firearm and had possessed one until recently. This history heightened their concern about his ability to carry out the violence himself.

His lawyer sought his release to an alternative to detention at an earlier hearing. The defense cited the account's limited reach and noted that Weinberger had not acted to carry out his statements. The lawyer also pointed to his reserve military service and volunteer work with police. In the latest request, prosecutors argued that house arrest would not prevent further posts because Weinberger could access the internet through a phone or computer. They maintained that the danger persists during efforts to form a government following the election.