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Article: Sharon affair. (Ariel Sharon and the Time magazine suit)
- Article from:
- National Review
- Article date:
- February 22, 1985
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1985 National Review, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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THE LIBEL CASE launched by Israel's former Defense Minister Ariel Sharon against Time Inc. was a complex political and legal event. It grew out of Sharon's own political needs; it exposed the arrogance of media power; and it raised questions about the use of libel suits for political purposes.
Ostensibly, Sharon was suing to protect his reputation against what he called a "blood libel." Time reported that Sharon had discussed "revenge" with Lebanese Phalangists after the assassination of President-elect Bashir Gemayel, and implied that Sharon had encouraged the subsequent massacres in the Palestinian refugee camps. Time alleged that the evidence for all of this ...